Summary

 

A Proxy Committee comprised of senior investment and compliance officers of Northern Trust Corporation, including officers of the Investment Adviser, has adopted certain guidelines (the "Proxy Guidelines") concerning various corporate governance issues. The Proxy Committee has the responsibility for the content, interpretation and application of the Proxy Guidelines and may apply these Proxy Guidelines with a measure of flexibility. The Investment Adviser has retained an independent third party proxy voting service (the "Service Firm") to review proxy proposals and to make voting recommendations to the Proxy Committee in a manner consistent with the Proxy Guidelines. The Proxy Committee will apply the Proxy Guidelines as discussed below to any such recommendation.

 

The Proxy Guidelines provide that the Proxy Committee will generally vote for or against various proxy proposals, usually based upon certain specified criteria. As an example, the Proxy Guidelines provide that the Proxy Committee will generally vote in favor of:

 

• Shareholder proposals in support of the appointment of a lead independent director;
• Shareholder proposals requesting that the board of a company be comprised of a majority of independent directors;
• Proposals to repeal classified boards and to elect all directors annually;
• Shareholder proposals calling for directors in uncontested elections to be elected by an affirmative majority of votes cast where companies have not adopted a written majority voting (or majority withhold) policy;
• Shareholder proposals that ask a company to submit its poison pill for shareholder ratification;
• Shareholder proposals to lower supermajority shareholder vote requirements for charter and bylaw amendments;
• Shareholder proposals to lower supermajority shareholder vote requirements for mergers and other significant business combinations, while taking into account ownership structure, quorum requirements, and vote requirements;
• Management proposals to reduce the par value of common stock, while taking into account accompanying corporate governance concerns;
• Management proposals to implement a reverse stock split, provided that the reverse split does not result in an increase of authorized but unissued shares of more than 100% after giving effect to the shares needed for the reverse split;
• Proposals to approve an ESOP (employee stock ownership plan) or other broad based employee stock purchase or ownership plan, or to increase authorized shares for such existing plans, except in cases when the number of shares allocated to such plans is "excessive" (i.e., generally greater than ten percent (10%) of outstanding shares); and
• Proposals requesting that a company take reasonable steps to ensure that women and minority candidates are in the pool from which board nominees are chosen or that request that women and minority candidates are routinely sought as part of every board search the company undertakes.

 

The Proxy Guidelines also provide that the Proxy Committee will generally vote against:

 

• Shareholder proposals requesting that the board of a company be comprised of a supermajority of independent directors;
• Proposals to elect director nominees if it is a CEO who sits on more than two public boards or a non-CEO who sits on more than four public company boards;
• Proposals to classify the board of directors;
• Shareholder proposals requiring directors to own a minimum amount of company stock in order to qualify as a director or to remain on the board;
• Shareholder proposals to impose age and term limits unless the company is found to have poor board refreshment and director succession practices;
• Proposals for multi class exchange offers and multi class recapitalizations;
• Management proposals to require a supermajority shareholder vote to approve mergers and other significant business combinations, while taking into account ownership structure, quorum requirements, and vote requirements;
• Management proposals to require a supermajority shareholder vote to approve charter and bylaw amendments; and
• Shareholder proposals to eliminate, direct, or otherwise restrict charitable contributions.

 

For proxy proposals that under the Proxy Guidelines are to be voted on a case by case basis, the Proxy Committee provides supplementary instructions to the Service Firm to guide it in making vote recommendations.

 

Except as otherwise provided in the Northern Proxy Voting Policy, the Proxy Committee may vote proxies contrary to the recommendations of the Service Firm if it determines that such action is in the best interest of a Fund. In exercising its discretion, the Proxy Committee may take into account a wide array of factors relating to the matter under consideration, the nature of the proposal and the company involved. As a result, the Proxy Committee may vote in one manner in the case of one company and in a different manner in the case of another where, for example, the past history of the company, the character and integrity of its management, the role of outside directors, and the company’s record of producing performance for investors justifies a high degree of confidence in the company and the effect of the proposal on the value of the investment. Similarly, poor past performance, uncertainties about management and future directions, and other factors may lead the Proxy Committee to conclude that particular proposals present unacceptable investment risks and should not be supported. In addition, the Proxy Committee also evaluates proposals in context. For example, a particular proposal may be acceptable standing alone, but objectionable when part of an existing or proposed package. Special circumstances may also justify casting different votes for different clients with respect to the same proxy vote.

 

The Investment Adviser or its affiliates may occasionally be subject to conflicts of interest in the voting of proxies due to business or personal relationships it maintains with persons having an interest in the outcome of certain votes. For example, the Investment Adviser or its affiliates may provide trust, custody, investment management, brokerage, underwriting, banking and related services to accounts owned or controlled by companies whose management is soliciting proxies. Occasionally, the Investment Adviser or its affiliates may also have business or personal relationships with other proponents of proxy proposals, participants in proxy contests, corporate directors or candidates for directorships. The Investment Adviser may also be required to vote proxies for securities issued by Northern Trust Corporation or its affiliates or on matters in which the Investment Adviser or its affiliates have a direct financial interest, such as shareholder approval of a change in the advisory fees paid by a Fund. The Investment Adviser seeks to address such conflicts of interest through various measures, including the establishment, composition and authority of the Proxy Committee and the retention of the Service Firm to perform proxy review and vote recommendation functions. The Proxy Committee has the responsibility to determine whether a proxy vote involves a conflict of interest and how the conflict should be addressed in conformance with the Northern Proxy Voting Policy. The Proxy Committee may resolve such conflicts in any of a variety of ways, including without limitation the following: (i) voting in accordance with the Proxy Guidelines based recommendation of the Service Firm; (ii) voting in accordance with the recommendation of an independent fiduciary appointed for that purpose; (iii) voting pursuant to client direction by seeking instructions from the Board of Trustees; or (iv) by voting pursuant to a "mirror voting" arrangement under which shares are voted in the same manner and proportion as shares over which the Investment Adviser does not have voting discretion. The method selected by the Proxy Committee may vary depending upon the facts and circumstances of each situation.

 

The Investment Adviser may choose not to vote proxies in certain situations. This may occur, for example, in situations where the exercise of voting rights could restrict the ability to freely trade the security in question (as is the case, for example, in certain foreign jurisdictions known as "blocking markets"). In circumstances in which the Service Firm does not provide recommendations for a particular proxy, the Proxy Committee may obtain recommendations from analysts at the Investment Adviser who review the issuer in question or the industry in general. The Proxy Committee will apply the Proxy Guidelines as discussed above to any such recommendation.

 

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