CITE

    15 USC Sec. 80a-35                                          01/05/2009

EXPCITE

    TITLE 15 - COMMERCE AND TRADE
    CHAPTER 2D - INVESTMENT COMPANIES AND ADVISERS
    SUBCHAPTER I - INVESTMENT COMPANIES

HEAD

    Sec. 80a-35. Breach of fiduciary duty

STATUTE

    (a) Civil actions by Commission; jurisdiction; allegations;
      injunctive or other relief
      The Commission is authorized to bring an action in the proper
    district court of the United States, or in the United States court
    of any territory or other place subject to the jurisdiction of the
    United States, alleging that a person serving or acting in one or
    more of the following capacities has engaged within five years of
    the commencement of the action or is about to engage in any act or
    practice constituting a breach of fiduciary duty involving personal
    misconduct in respect of any registered investment company for
    which such person so serves or acts -
        (1) as officer, director, member of any advisory board,
      investment adviser, or depositor; or
        (2) as principal underwriter, if such registered company is an
      open-end company, unit investment trust, or face-amount
      certificate company.
    If such allegations are established, the court may enjoin such
    persons from acting in any or all such capacities either
    permanently or temporarily and award such injunctive or other
    relief against such person as may be reasonable and appropriate in
    the circumstances, having due regard to the protection of investors
    and to the effectuation of the policies declared in section 80a-
    1(b) of this title.
    (b) Compensation or payments as basis of fiduciary duty; civil
      actions by Commission or security holder; burden of proof;
      judicial consideration of director or shareholder approval;
      persons liable; extent of liability; exempted transactions;
      jurisdiction; finding restriction
      For the purposes of this subsection, the investment adviser of a
    registered investment company shall be deemed to have a fiduciary
    duty with respect to the receipt of compensation for services, or
    of payments of a material nature, paid by such registered
    investment company or by the security holders thereof, to such
    investment adviser or any affiliated person of such investment
    adviser. An action may be brought under this subsection by the
    Commission, or by a security holder of such registered investment
    company on behalf of such company, against such investment adviser,
    or any affiliated person of such investment adviser, or any other
    person enumerated in subsection (a) of this section who has a
    fiduciary duty concerning such compensation or payments, for breach
    of fiduciary duty in respect of such compensation or payments paid
    by such registered investment company or by the security holders
    thereof to such investment adviser or person. With respect to any
    such action the following provisions shall apply:
      (1) It shall not be necessary to allege or prove that any
    defendant engaged in personal misconduct, and the plaintiff shall
    have the burden of proving a breach of fiduciary duty.
      (2) In any such action approval by the board of directors of such
    investment company of such compensation or payments, or of
    contracts or other arrangements providing for such compensation or
    payments, and ratification or approval of such compensation or
    payments, or of contracts or other arrangements providing for such
    compensation or payments, by the shareholders of such investment
    company, shall be given such consideration by the court as is
    deemed appropriate under all the circumstances.
      (3) No such action shall be brought or maintained against any
    person other than the recipient of such compensation or payments,
    and no damages or other relief shall be granted against any person
    other than the recipient of such compensation or payments. No award
    of damages shall be recoverable for any period prior to one year
    before the action was instituted. Any award of damages against such
    recipient shall be limited to the actual damages resulting from the
    breach of fiduciary duty and shall in no event exceed the amount of
    compensation or payment received from such investment company, or
    the security holders thereof, by such recipient.
      (4) This subsection shall not apply to compensation or payments
    made in connection with transactions subject to section 80a-17 of
    this title, or rules, regulations, or orders thereunder, or to
    sales loads for the acquisition of any security issued by a
    registered investment company.
      (5) Any action pursuant to this subsection may be brought only in
    an appropriate district court of the United States.
      (6) No finding by a court with respect to a breach of fiduciary
    duty under this subsection shall be made a basis (A) for a finding
    of a violation of this subchapter for the purposes of sections 80a-
    9 and 80a-48 of this title, section 78o of this title, or section
    80b-3 of this title, or (B) for an injunction to prohibit any
    person from serving in any of the capacities enumerated in
    subsection (a) of this section.
    (c) Corporate or other trustees performing functions of investment
      advisers
      For the purposes of subsections (a) and (b) of this section, the
    term "investment adviser" includes a corporate or other trustee
    performing the functions of an investment adviser.

SOURCE

    (Aug. 22, 1940, ch. 686, title I, Sec. 36, 54 Stat. 841; Pub. L. 91-
    547, Sec. 20, Dec. 14, 1970, 84 Stat. 1428; Pub. L. 94-29, Sec.
    28(7), June 4, 1975, 89 Stat. 166; Pub. L. 100-181, title VI, Sec.
    622, Dec. 4, 1987, 101 Stat. 1262.)

AMENDMENTS

      1987 - Subsec. (b)(4). Pub. L. 100-181, Sec. 622(1), substituted
    "loads" for "loans".
      Subsecs. (c), (d). Pub. L. 100-181, Sec. 622(2), (3),
    redesignated as subsec. (c) provisions which were added and
    designated as subsec. (d) by Pub. L. 94-29, and substituted
    "subsections (a) and (b)" for "subsections (a) through (c)".
      1975 - Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 94-29 added subsec. (d).
      1970 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 91-547 designated existing provisions
    as subsec. (a) and substituted in first sentence "has engaged
    within five years of the commencement of the action or is about to
    engage in any act or practice constituting a breach of fiduciary
    duty involving personal misconduct" for "has been guilty, after
    August 22, 1940, and within five years of the commencement of the
    action, of gross misconduct or gross abuse of trust" and second
    sentence reading "If such allegations are established, the court
    may enjoin such persons from acting in any or all such capacities
    either permanently or temporarily and award such injunctive or
    other relief against such person as may be reasonable and
    appropriate in the circumstances, having due regard to the
    protection of investors and to the effectuation of the policies
    declared in section 80a-1(b) of this title" for prior provision
    reading "If the Commission's allegations of such gross misconduct
    or gross abuse of trust are established, the court shall enjoin
    such person from acting in such capacity or capacities either
    permanently or for such period of time as it in its discretion
    shall deem appropriate."
      Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 91-547 added subsec. (b).
                     EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1975 AMENDMENT
      Amendment by Pub. L. 94-29 effective June 4, 1975, see section
    31(a) of Pub. L. 94-29, set out as a note under section 78b of this
    title.
                     EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1970 AMENDMENT
      Amendment by Pub. L. 91-547 effective Dec. 14, 1970, except that
    subsec. (b) of this section effective on expiration of eighteen
    months after Dec. 14, 1970, see section 30 (introductory text and
    par. (4)) of Pub. L. 91-547, set out as a note under section 80a-52
    of this title.

TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS

      For transfer of functions of Securities and Exchange Commission,
    with certain exceptions, to Chairman of such Commission, see Reorg.
    Plan No. 10 of 1950, Secs. 1, 2, eff. May 24, 1950, 15 F.R. 3175,
    64 Stat. 1265, set out under section 78d of this title.
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