EXHIBIT (9)(c)
REGISTRAR,
TRANSFER AGENCY AND SERVICE AGREEMENT
between
GABELLI UTILITY FUND
and
STATE STREET BANK AND TRUST COMPANY
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ARTICLE 1 TERMS OF APPOINTMENT; DUTIES OF THE BANK . . . . . . . . . . 3
ARTICLE 2 FEES AND EXPENSES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
ARTICLE 3 REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES OF THE BANK . . . . . . . . . 6
ARTICLE 4 REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES OF THE FUND . . . . . . . . . 7
ARTICLE 5 DATA ACCESS AND PROPRIETARY INFORMATION . . . . . . . . . . 8
ARTICLE 6 INDEMNIFICATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
ARTICLE 7 STANDARD OF CARE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
ARTICLE 8 COVENANTS OF THE FUND AND THE BANK . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
ARTICLE 9 TERMINATION OF AGREEMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
ARTICLE 10 ASSIGNMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
ARTICLE 11 AMENDMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
ARTICLE 12 MASSACHUSETTS LAW TO APPLY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
ARTICLE 13 FORCE MAJEURE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
ARTICLE 14 CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
ARTICLE 15 MERGER OF AGREEMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
ARTICLE 16 SURVIVAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
ARTICLE 17 SEVERABILITY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
ARTICLE 18 COUNTERPARTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
REGISTRAR, TRANSFER AGENCY AND SERVICE AGREEMENT
AGREEMENT made as of the ___________________ day of
____________________, 1999, by and between Gabelli Utility Fund a
_____________________ corporation, having its principal office and place of
business at ______________________________ (the "Fund"), and STATE STREET
BANK AND TRUST, Gabelli, a Massachusetts trust company having its principal
office and place of business at ▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇▇, ▇▇▇▇▇▇, ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇
▇▇▇▇▇ (the "Bank").
WHEREAS, the Fund desires to appoint the Bank as its registrar,
transfer agent, dividend disbursing agent and agent in connection with
certain other activities and the Bank desires to accept such appointment;
NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual covenants herein
contained, the parties hereto agree as follows:
ARTICLE 1 TERMS OF APPOINTMENT; DUTIES OF THE BANK
1.01 Subject to the terms and conditions set forth in this
Agreement, the Fund hereby employs and appoints the Bank to act as, and the
Bank agrees to act as registrar, transfer agent for the Fund's authorized
and issued shares of its common stock ("Shares"), dividend disbursing agent
and agent in connection with any dividend reinvestment plan as set out in
the prospectus of the Fund, corresponding to the date of this Agreement.
1.02 The Bank agrees that it will perform the following services:
(a) In accordance with procedures established from time to time by
agreement between the Fund and the Bank, the Bank shall:
(i) Issue and record the appropriate number of Shares as
authorized and hold such shares in the appropriate
Shareholder account
(ii) Effect transfers of Shares by the registered owners
thereof upon receipt of appropriate documentation;
(iii) Prepare and transmit payments for dividends and
distributions declared by the Fund;
(iv) Act as agent for Shareholders pursuant to the dividend
reinvestment and cash purchase plan as amended from time to
time in accordance with the terms of the agreement to be
entered into between the Shareholders and the Bank in
substantially the form attached as Exhibit hereto;
(v) Issue replacement certificates for those certificates
alleged to have been lost, stolen or destroyed upon receipt
by the Bank of indemnification satisfactory to the Bank and
protecting the Bank and the Fund, and the Bank at its
option, may issue replacement certificates in place of
mutilated stock certificates upon presentation thereof and
without such indemnity.
(b) In addition to and neither in lieu nor in contravention of the
services set forth in the above paragraph (a), the Bank shall: (i) perform
all of the customary services of a registrar, transfer agent, dividend
disbursing agent and agent of the dividend reinvestment anc cash purchase
plan as described in Article 1 consistent with those requirements in effect
as of the date of this agreement. The detailed definition, frequency,
limitations and associated costs (if any) set out in the attached fee
schedule, include but are not limited to: maintaining all Shareholder
accounts, preparing Shareholder meeting lists, mailing proxies, and mailing
Shareholder reports to current Shareholders, withholding taxes on U.S.
resident and non-resident alien accounts where applicable, preparing and
filing U.S. Treasury Department Forms 1099 and other appropriate forms
required with respect to dividends and distributions by federal authorities
for all registered Shareholders.
(c) The Bank shall provide additional services on behalf of the
Fund (i.e., escheatment services) which may be agreed upon in writing
between the Fund and the Bank.
ARTICLE 2 FEES AND EXPENSES
2.01 For the performance by the Bank pursuant to this Agreement,
the Fund agrees to pay the Bank an annual maintenance fee as set out in the
initial fee schedule attached hereto. Such fees and out-of-pocket expenses
and advances identified under Section 2.02 below may be changed from time
to time subject to mutual written agreement between the Fund and the Bank.
2.02 In addition to the fee paid under Section 2.01 above, the Fund
agrees to reimburse the Bank for out-of-pocket expenses, including but not
limited to confirmation production, postage, forms, telephone, microfilm,
microfiche, tabulating proxies, records storage, or advances incurred by
the Bank for the items set out in the fee schedule attached hereto. In
addition, any other expenses incurred by the Bank at the request or with
the consent of the Fund, will be reimbursed by the Fund.
2.03 The Fund agrees to pay all fees and reimbursable expenses
within five days following the receipt of the respective billing notice.
Postage and the cost of materials for mailing of dividends, proxies, Fund
reports and other mailings to all Shareholder accounts shall be advanced to
the Bank by the Fund at least seven (7) days prior to the mailing date of
such materials.
ARTICLE 3 REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES OF THE BANK
The Bank represents and warrants to the Fund that:
3.01 It is a trust company duly organized and existing and in good
standing under the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
3.02 It is duly qualified to carry on its business in the
Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
3.03 It is empowered under applicable laws and by its Charter and
By-Laws to enter into and perform this Agreement.
3.04 All requisite corporate proceedings have been taken to
authorize it to enter into and perform this Agreement.
3.05 It has and will continue to have access to the necessary
facilities, equipment and personnel to perform its duties and obligations
under this Agreement.
ARTICLE 4 REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES OF THE FUND
The Fund represents and warrants to the Bank that:
4.01 It is a corporation duly organized and existing and in good
standing under the laws of Maryland.
4.02 It is empowered under applicable laws and by its Articles of
Incorporation and By-Laws to enter into and perform this Agreement
4.03 All corporate proceedings required by said Articles of
Incorporation and By-Laws have been taken to authorize it to enter into and
perform this Agreement.
4.04 It is a closed-end, diversified investment company registered
under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended.
4.05 To the extent required by federal securities laws a
registration statement under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended is
currently effective and appropriate state securities law filings have been
made with respect to all Shares of the Fund being offered for sale;
information to the contrary will result in immediate notification to the
Bank.
4.06 It shall make all required filings under federal and state
securities laws.
ARTICLE 5 DATA ACCESS AND PROPRIETARY INFORMATION
5.01 The Fund acknowledges that the data bases, computer programs,
screen formats, interactive design techniques, and other information
furnished to the Fund by the Bank are provided solely in connection with
the services rendered under this Agreement and constitute copyrighted trade
secrets or proprietary information of substantial value to the Bank. Such
databases, programs, formats, designs, techniques and other information are
collectively referred to below as "Proprietary Information." The Fund
agrees that it shall treat all Proprietary Information to any person or
organization except as expressly permitted hereunder. The Fund agrees for
itself and its employees and agents:
(a) to use such programs and databases (i) solely on the Fund
computers, or (ii) solely from equipment at the locations agreed to between
the Fund and the Bank and (iii) in accordance with the Bank's applicable
user documentation;
(b) to refrain from copying or duplicating in any way (other than
in the normal course of performing processing on the Fund's computers) any
part of any Proprietary Information;
(c) to refrain from obtaining unauthorized access to any programs,
data or other information not owned by the Fund, and if such access is
accidentally obtained, to respect and safeguard the same Proprietary
Information;
(d) to refrain from causing or allowing information transmitted
from the Bank's computer to the Funds' terminal to be retransmitted to any
other computer terminal or other device except as expressly permitted by
the Bank, (such permission not to be unreasonably withheld);
(e) that the Fund shall have access only to those authorized
transactions as agreed to between the Fund and the Bank; and
(f) to honor reasonable written requests made by the Bank to
protect at the Bank's expense the rights of the Bank in Proprietary
Information at common law and under applicable statues.
5.02 If the transactions available to the Fund include the ability
to originate electronic instructions to the Bank in order to (i) effect the
transfer or movement of cash or Shares or (ii) transmit Shareholder
information or other information, then in such event the Bank shall be
entitled to rely on the validity and authenticity of such instruction
without undertaking any further inquiry as long as such instruction is
undertaken in conformity with security procedures established by the Bank
from time to time.
ARTICLE 6 INDEMNIFICATION
6.01 The Bank shall not be responsible for, and the Fund shall
indemnify and hold the Bank harmless from and against, any and all losses,
damages, costs, charges, counsel fees, payments, expenses and liability
arising out of or attributable to:
(a) All actions of the Bank or its agents or subcontractors
required to be taken pursuant to this Agreement; provided that such actions
are taken in good faith and without negligence or willful misconduct.
(b) The Fund's lack of good faith, negligence or willful
misconduct which arise out of the breach of any representation or warranty
of the Fund hereunder.
(c) The reliance on or use by the Bank or its agents or
subcontractors of information, records, documents or services which (i) are
received by the Bank or its agents or subcontractors, and (ii) have been
prepared, maintained or performed by the Fund or any other person or firm
on behalf of the Fund including but not limited to any previous transfer
agent registrar.
(d) The reliance on, or the carrying out by the Bank or its agents
or subcontractors of any instructions or requests of the Fund.
(e) The offer or sale of Shares in violation of any requirement
under the federal securities laws or regulations or the securities laws or
regulations of any state that such Shares be registered in such state or in
violation of any stop order or other determination or ruling by any federal
agency or any state with respect to the offer or sale of such Shares in
such State.
6.02 At any time the Bank may apply to any officer of the Fund for
instructions, and may consult with legal counsel with respect to any matter
arising in connection with the services to be performed by the Bank under
this Agreement, and the Bank and its agents or subcontractors shall not be
liable and shall be indemnified by the Fund for any action taken or omitted
by it in reliance upon such instructions or upon the opinion of such
counsel. The Bank, its agents and subcontractors shall be protected and
indemnified in acting upon any paper or document furnished by or on behalf
of the Fund, reasonably believed to be genuine and to have been signed by
the proper person or persons, or upon any instruction, information, data,
records or documents provided the Bank or its agents or subcontractors by
telephone, in person, machine readable input, telex, CRT data entry or
other similar means authorized by the Fund, and shall not be held to have
notice thereof from the Fund. The Bank, its agents and subcontractors
shall also be protected and indemnified in recognizing stock certificates
which are reasonably believed to bear the proper manual or facsimile
signatures of the officers of the Fund, and the proper countersignature of
any former transfer agent or former registrar, or of a co-transfer agent or
co-registrar.
6.03 In order that the indemnification provisions contained in this
Article 6 shall apply, upon the assertion of a claim for which the Fund may
be required to indemnify the Bank, the Bank shall promptly notify the Fund
in writing of such assertion, and shall keep the Fund advised with respect
to all developments concerning such claim. The Fund shall have the option
to participate with the Bank in the defense of such claim or to defend
against said claim in its own name or in the name of the Bank. The Bank
shall in no case confess any claim or make any compromise in any case in
which the Fund may be required to indemnify the Bank except with the Fund's
prior written consent.
ARTICLE 7 STANDARD OF CARE
7.01 The Bank shall at all times act in good faith and agrees to
use its best efforts within reasonable limits to insure the accuracy of all
services performed under this Agreement, but assumes no responsibility and
shall not be liable for loss or damage due to errors unless said errors are
caused by its negligence, bad faith, or willful misconduct of that of its
employees.
ARTICLE 8 COVENANTS OF THE FUND AND THE BANK
8.01 The Fund shall promptly furnish to the Bank the following:
(a) A certified copy of the resolution of the Board of Directors
of the Fund authorizing the appointment of the Bank and the execution and
delivery of this Agreement.
(b) A copy of the Articles of Incorporation and By-Laws of the
Fund and all amendments thereto.
8.02 The Bank hereby agrees to establish and maintain facilities
and procedures reasonably acceptable to the Fund for safekeeping of stock
certificates, check forms and facsimile signature imprinting devices, if
any; and for the preparation or use, and for keeping account of, such
certificates, forms and devices.
8.03 The Bank shall keep records relating to the services to be
performed hereunder, in the form and manner as it may deem advisable. To
the extent required by Section 31 of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as
amended, and the Rules thereunder, the Bank agrees that all such records
prepared or maintained by the Bank relating to the services to be performed
by the Bank hereunder are the property of the Fund and will be preserved,
maintained and made available in accordance with such Section and Rules,
and will be surrendered promptly to the Fund on and in accordance with its
request.
8.04 The Bank and the Fund agree that all books, records,
information and data pertaining to the business of the other party which
are exchanged or received pursuant to the negotiation or the carrying out
of this Agreement shall remain confidential, and shall not be voluntarily
disclosed to any other person, except as may be requested by a governmental
entity or as may be required by law.
8.05 In cases of any requests or demands for the inspection of the
Shareholder records of the Fund, the Bank will endeavor to notify the Fund
and to secure instructions from an authorized officer of the Fund as to
such inspection. The Bank reserves the right, however, to exhibit the
Shareholder records to any person whenever it is advised by its counsel
that it may be held liable for the failure to exhibit the Shareholder
records to such person.
ARTICLE 9 TERMINATION OF AGREEMENT
9.01 This Agreement may be terminated by either party upon one
hundred twenty (120) days written notice to the other.
9.02 Should the Fund exercise its right to terminate, all out-of-
pocket expenses associated with the movement of records and material will
be borne by the Fund. Additionally, the Bank reserves the right to charge
for any other reasonable expenses associated with such termination and/or a
charge equivalent to the average of three (3) month's fees.
ARTICLE 10 ASSIGNMENT
10.01 Except as provided in Section 10.03 below, neither this
Agreement nor any rights or obligations hereunder may be assigned by either
party without the written consent of the other party.
10.02 This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be
binding upon the parties and their respective permitted successors and
assigns.
10.03 The Bank may, without further consent on the part of the
Fund, subcontract for the performance hereof with (i) Boston EquiServe
Limited Partnership., a Massachusetts limited partnership ("Boston
EquiServe"), which is duly registered as a transfer agent pursuant to
Section 17A(c)(2) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ("Section
17A(c)(2)"), or (ii) a Boston EquiServe affiliate duly registered as a
transfer agent pursuant to Section 17A(c)(2), provided, however, that the
Bank shall be as fully responsible to the Fund for the acts and omissions
of any subcontractor as it is for its own acts and omissions.
ARTICLE 11 AMENDMENT
11.01 This Agreement may be amended or modified by a written
agreement executed by both parties and authorized or approved by a
resolution of the Board of Directors of the Fund.
ARTICLE 12 MASSACHUSETTS LAW TO APPLY
12.01 This Agreement shall be construed and the provisions
thereof interpreted under and in accordance with the laws of The
Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
ARTICLE 13 FORCE MAJEURE
13.01 In the event either party is unable to perform its
obligations under the terms of this Agreement because of acts of God,
strikes, equipment or transmission failure or damage reasonably beyond its
control, or other causes reasonably beyond its control, such party shall
not be liable for damages to the other for any damages resulting from such
failure to perform or otherwise from such causes.
ARTICLE 14 CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES
14.01 Neither party to this Agreement shall be liable to the
other party for consequential damages under any provision of this Agreement
or for any consequential damages arising out of any act or failure to act
hereunder.
ARTICLE 15 MERGER OF AGREEMENT
15.01 This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between
the parties hereto and supersedes any prior agreement with respect to the
subject hereof whether oral or written.
ARTICLE 16 SURVIVAL
16.01 All provisions regarding indemnification, warranty,
liability and limits thereon, and confidentiality and/or protection of
proprietary rights and trade secrets shall survive the termination of this
Agreement.
ARTICLE 17 SEVERABILITY
17.01 If any provision or provisions of this Agreement shall be
held to be invalid, unlawful, or unenforceable, the validity, legality and
enforceability of the remaining provisions shall not in any way be affected
or impaired.
ARTICLE 18 COUNTERPARTS
18.01 This Agreement may be executed by the parties hereto on
any number of counterparts, and all of said counterparts taken together
shall be deemed to constitute one and the same instrument.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Agreement
to be executed in their names and on their behalf by and through their
duly authorized officers, as of the day and year first above written.
Gabelli Utility Fund
BY: __________________________
State Street Bank and Trust Company
BY: ____________________________