CODE OF ETHICS
TOUCHSTONE TAX-FREE TRUST
Touchstone Tax-Free Trust (the "Trust") has adopted this Code of Ethics
effective as of July 1, 2000, in accordance with the provisions of Rule 17j-1
under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "1940 Act").
Rule 17j-1 under the 1940 Act generally prohibits deceitful, fraudulent or
manipulative practices with respect to purchases or sales of securities held or
to be acquired by investment companies. While this Code is designed to prevent
violations of Rule 17j-1, it is possible to comply with the terms of this Code
and nevertheless violate the general prohibitions set forth in Rule 17j-1. Those
persons subject to this Code should, therefore, bear these general prohibitions
in mind at all times.
A. GENERAL STANDARDS OF ETHICAL CONDUCT
------------------------------------
Directors, officers and other Access Persons (as defined in this Code) have
a duty at all times to place the interests of the Trust ahead of their own
interests.
All personal securities transactions of these individuals must be conducted
in compliance with this Code and in a manner that avoids any actual or potential
conflict of interest or any abuse of the individual's position of trust and
responsibility to the Trust.
All activities of these individuals also must be conducted in accordance
with the fundamental standard that they may not take any inappropriate advantage
of their positions with the Trust.
B. STANDARDS OF CONDUCT FOR ACCESS PERSONS
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Note: Access Persons includes Advisory Persons and Investment Persons.
1. Prohibited Purchases and Sales When a Touchstone Fund Trade Is Pending
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a. Prohibition
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If an Access Person knows that a Touchstone Fund has placed a
"buy" or "sell" order in a Covered Security on a particular day, the
Access Person may not purchase or sell, directly or indirectly, the
Covered Security or a Related Security on the same day if:
o the Access Person has any direct or indirect beneficial
ownership in the Covered Security or a Related Security or
o the Access Person will acquire any direct or indirect
beneficial ownership in the Covered Security or a Related
Security by reason of the purchase.
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b. Exceptions
----------
This prohibition does not apply to:
o purchases or sales involving 500 or fewer shares of a
Covered Security that is included in the Standard & Poor's
500
o purchases or sales effected in any account over which the
Access Person has no direct or indirect influence or control
o purchases or sales that are non-volitional on the part of
the Access Person
o purchases that are part of an automatic dividend
reinvestment plan
o sales that are part of an automatic withdrawal plan
o purchases effected upon the exercise of rights issued by an
issuer pro rata to all holders of a class of its securities
to the extent the rights were acquired from the issuer
o sales of rights issued by an issuer pro rata to all holders
of a class of its securities to the extent the rights were
acquired from the issuer or
o purchases or sales that the Compliance Officer approves in
writing before the purchase or sale
c. Approval by the Compliance Officer
----------------------------------
To obtain approval for a specific transaction, an Access Person
should contact the Compliance Officer. The Access Person must disclose
to the Compliance Officer all factors potentially relevant to a
conflict of interest analysis that the Access Person is aware of,
including the existence of any substantial economic relationship
between his or her transaction and the Touchstone Fund's transaction.
Generally the Compliance Officer will approve a transaction only
if:
o the transaction is only remotely potentially harmful to the
Touchstone Fund because it would be very unlikely to affect
a highly institutional market
o the transaction is clearly not economically related to the
securities to be purchased or sold by the Touchstone Fund or
o the transaction is unlikely to result in any of the abuses
described in Rule 17j-1.
2. Confidentiality
---------------
An Access Person may not reveal to any other person (except in the
normal course of his or her duties on behalf of the Trust) any information
about securities transactions of a Touchstone Fund or securities under
consideration for purchase or sale by a Touchstone Fund.
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C. STANDARDS OF CONDUCT FOR ADVISORY PERSONS
-----------------------------------------
Note: Advisory Persons includes Investment Persons.
1. Restrictions on Serving on Boards of Directors
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An Advisory Person may not serve on the board of directors of a
publicly traded company without prior approval from the Compliance Officer.
2. Restrictions Involving Gifts
----------------------------
An Advisory Person may not accept in any calendar year gifts with a
value of more than $100 from any person that does business with a
Touchstone Fund.
This prohibition shall not apply to:
o an occasional breakfast, lunch, dinner or reception, ticket to a
sporting event or the theater, or comparable entertainment that
is not so frequent, so costly nor so extensive as to raise any
question of impropriety
o a breakfast, lunch, dinner, reception or cocktail party in
conjunction with a bona fide business meeting or
o a gift approved in writing by the Compliance Officer because the
character or value of the gift would not raise any question of
impropriety
D. STANDARDS OF CONDUCT FOR INVESTMENT PERSONS
-------------------------------------------
1. Prohibited Purchases and Sales Within 3 Trading Days of a Touchstone
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Fund Trade
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a. Prohibition
-----------
If the Touchstone Fund for which an Investment Person acts as
portfolio manager has executed a trade in a Covered Security, the
Investment Person may not purchase or sell, directly or indirectly,
the Covered Security or a Related Security within 3 trading days
before or after the Touchstone Fund's trade if:
o the Investment Person has any direct or indirect beneficial
ownership in the Covered Security or a Related Security or
o the Investment Person will acquire any direct or indirect
beneficial ownership in the Covered Security or a Related
Security by reason of the purchase.
b. Exceptions
----------
This prohibition does not apply to:
o purchases or sales involving 500 or fewer shares of a
Covered Security that is included in the Standard & Poor's
500
o purchases or sales effected in any account over which the
Investment Person has no direct or indirect influence or
control
o purchases or sales that are non-volitional on the part of
the Investment Person
o purchases that are part of an automatic dividend
reinvestment plan
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o sales that are part of an automatic withdrawal plan
o purchases effected upon the exercise of rights issued by an
issuer pro rata to all holders of a class of its securities
to the extent the rights were acquired from the issuer
o sales of rights issued by an issuer pro rata to all holders
of a class of its securities to the extent the rights were
acquired from the issuer or
o purchases or sales that the Compliance Officer approves in
writing before the purchase or sale
c. Approval by the Compliance Officer
----------------------------------
To obtain approval for a specific transaction, an Investment
Person should contact the Compliance Officer. The Investment Person
must disclose to the Compliance Officer all factors potentially
relevant to a conflict of interest analysis that the Investment Person
is aware of, including the existence of any substantial economic
relationship between his or her transaction and the Touchstone Fund's
transaction.
Generally the Compliance Officer will approve a transaction only
if:
o the transaction is only remotely potentially harmful to the
Touchstone Fund because it would be very unlikely to affect
a highly institutional market
o the transaction is clearly not economically related to the
securities to be purchased or sold by the Touchstone Fund or
o the transaction is unlikely to result in any of the abuses
described in Rule 17j-1.
2. Transactions Requiring Pre-Clearance
------------------------------------
a. IPOs
----
An Investment Person may not acquire, directly or indirectly,
beneficial ownership in any security in an Initial Public Offering
without express prior approval from the Compliance Officer.
b. Limited Offerings
-----------------
An Investment Person may not acquire, directly or indirectly,
beneficial ownership in any security in a Limited Offering without
express prior approval from the Compliance Officer. The Investment
Person must disclose his or her investment in the security if he or
she takes part in any subsequent decision to invest in any security of
the same issuer on behalf of any Touchstone Fund for which the
Investment Person acts as portfolio manager.
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E. REPORTING
---------
Note: The reporting requirements described in this section apply to Access
Persons, which includes Advisory Persons and Investment Persons.
1. Duplicate Confirmations and Statements
--------------------------------------
Each Access Person, other than a Disinterested Trustee, must
arrange for duplicate copies of broker trade confirmations and
periodic statements of his or her brokerage accounts to be sent to the
Compliance Officer.
2. Holdings Reports
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a. What Information Must Be Included in a Holdings Reports?
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Each Access Person must submit written and signed reports
containing information about each Covered Security in which the Access
Person had any direct or indirect beneficial ownership ("Holdings
Reports").
Each Holdings Report must include the following information:
o title of each Covered Security in which the Access Person
had any direct or indirect beneficial ownership
o number of shares and/or principal amount of each Covered
Security in which the Access Person had any direct or
indirect beneficial ownership
o name of any broker, dealer or bank with whom the Access
Person maintained an account in which any securities were
held for the direct or indirect benefit of the Access Person
and
o date the Holdings Report is submitted by the Access Person
If an Access Person is not required to report any information on
a Holdings Report, the Access Person must submit a written and signed
statement to that effect to the Compliance Officer by the date on
which the Holdings Report is due.
b. When Must an Access Person Submit an Initial Holdings Report?
------------------------------------------------------------
Each Access Person must submit to the Compliance Officer an
Initial Holdings Report no later than 10 days after he or she becomes
an Access Person. The information included in the Initial Holdings
Report must reflect the Access Person's holdings as of the date he or
she became an Access Person.
c. When Must an Access Person Submit Annual Holdings Reports?
---------------------------------------------------------
Each Access Person must submit to the Compliance Officer an
Annual Holdings Report no later than January 30 of each year. The
information included in the Annual Holdings Report must reflect the
Access Person's holdings as of the immediately preceding December 31.
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d. Are There Any Exceptions to These Reporting Requirements?
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o Exceptions for Certain Securities and Accounts
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An Access Person does not have to include in his or her
Holdings Reports information about the following securities
or accounts:
o direct obligations of the government of the United
States
o bankers' acceptances
o bank certificates of deposit
o commercial paper
o high quality short-term debt instruments including
repurchase agreements
o shares issued by open-end Funds
o securities held in any account over which the Access
Person has no direct or indirect influence or control
and
o transactions effected for any account over which the
Access Person has no direct or indirect influence or
control
If an Access Person does not make a Holdings Report because
of this exception, the Access Person must submit a written
and signed statement to that effect to the Compliance
Officer by the date on which the Holdings Report is due.
o Exceptions For Disinterested Trustees
-------------------------------------
A Disinterested Trustee does not have to make an Initial
Holdings Report or an Annual Holdings Report.
2. Quarterly Transaction Reports
-----------------------------
a. What Information Must Be Included in a Quarterly Transaction
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Report?
------
Each Access Person must submit a report ("Quarterly Transaction
Report") containing information about:
o every transaction in a Covered Security during the quarter
and in which the Access Person had any direct or indirect
beneficial ownership and
o every account established by the Access Person in which any
securities were held during the quarter for the direct or
indirect benefit of the Access Person.
A Quarterly Transaction Report must include the following
information:
o date of each transaction in a Covered Security
o title of the Covered Security
o interest rate and maturity date of the Covered Security, if
applicable
o number of shares and/or principal amount of the Covered
Security
o nature of the transaction
o price of the Covered Security at which the transaction was
effected
o name of the broker, dealer or bank with or through which the
transaction was effected
o name of the broker, dealer or bank with whom the Access
Person established any new account
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o date the account was established and
o date the Quarterly Transaction Report is submitted by the
Access Person
If an Access Person is not required to report any information on
a Quarterly Transaction Report, the Access Person must submit a
written and signed statement to that effect to the Compliance Officer
no later than 10 days after the end of the calendar quarter.
b. When Must an Access Person Submit a Quarterly Transaction Report?
----------------------------------------------------------------
A Quarterly Transaction Report must be submitted to the
Compliance Officer no later than 10 days after the end of each
calendar quarter.
c. Are There Any Exceptions To These Requirements?
----------------------------------------------
o Exceptions for Certain Securities and Accounts
----------------------------------------------
An Access Person does not have to report transactions
involving the following securities or accounts:
o direct obligations of the government of the United
States
o bankers' acceptances
o bank certificates of deposit
o commercial paper
o high quality short-term debt instruments including
repurchase agreements
o shares issued by open-end Funds
o securities held in any account over which the Access
Person has no direct or indirect influence or control
and
o transactions effected for any account over which the
Access Person has no direct or indirect influence or
control
If an Access Person does not make a Quarterly Transaction
Report because of this exception, the Access Person must
submit a written and signed statement to that effect to the
Compliance Officer no later than 10 days after the end of
the calendar quarter.
o Exceptions Based On Duplicate Confirmations
-------------------------------------------
In addition, an Access Person does not have to make a
Quarterly Transaction Report for a calendar quarter if:
o the report would duplicate information contained in
broker trade confirmations or account statements
received by the Compliance Officer no later than 10
days after the end of the calendar quarter and
o all of the required information is contained in the
broker trade confirmations or account statements.
If broker trade confirmations do not contain all of the
required information, the Access Person must include the
missing information in a Quarterly Transaction Report.
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If an Access Person does not make a Quarterly Transaction
Report because of this exception, the Access Person must
submit a written and signed statement to that effect to the
Compliance Officer no later than 10 days after the end of
the calendar quarter.
o Exceptions For Disinterested Trustees
-------------------------------------
A Disinterested Trustee does not have to make a Quarterly
Transaction Report unless the Disinterested Trustee knew or,
in the ordinary course of fulfilling his or her official
duties as a Trustee of the Trust, should have known that
during the 15-day period immediately before or after the
Disinterested Trustee's transaction in a Covered Security, a
Touchstone Fund purchase or sold the Covered Security, or
the Touchstone Fund or its investment adviser considered
purchasing or selling the Covered Security.
F. COMPLIANCE OFFICER REVIEWS
--------------------------
In reviewing transactions, the Compliance Officer will take into account
the various exceptions included in this Code. Before making a determination that
an Access Person has violated this Code, the Compliance Officer will give the
Access Person an opportunity to supply additional information about the
transaction in question.
G. SANCTIONS
---------
The Board of Trustees of the Trust may impose sanctions on an Access Person
for violations of this Code as it deems appropriate. Sanctions could include
disgorgement of any profits realized by the Access Person as a result of the
violation, a letter of censure or suspension in the Access Person's personnel
file, or termination of the employment of the Access Person.
H. MISCELLANEOUS
-------------
All reports of securities transactions and any other information reported
pursuant to this Code will be treated as confidential.
The Board of Trustees of the Trust may from time to time adopt
interpretations of this Code as it deems appropriate.
I. DEFINITIONS
-----------
"Access Person" means
o any trustee of the Trust
o any officer of the Trust or
o any Advisory Person (as defined below) of the Trust
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"Advisory Person" means
o any employee of the Trust (or of any company in a control relationship
to the Trust) who, in connection with his or her regular functions or
duties, makes, participates in or obtains information regarding the
purchase or sale of Covered Securities by a Touchstone Fund
o any employee of the Trust (or of any company in a control relationship
to the Trust) whose functions relate to the making of any
recommendations with respect to purchases or sales of Covered
Securities by a Touchstone Fund or
o any natural person in a control relationship with the Trust who
obtains information regarding recommendations made to a Touchstone
Fund with regard to the purchase or sale of Covered Securities by a
Touchstone Fund
"Beneficial Ownership" is interpreted in the same manner as it would be
under Rule 16a-1(a)(2) promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of
1934.
"Touchstone Fund" means any series of the Trust.
"Control" has the same meaning as in Section 2(a)(9) of the 1940 Act.
"Covered Security" means a security as defined in Section 2(a)(36) of the
1940 Act (in effect, all securities), except that it does not include:
o direct obligations of the government of the United States
o bankers' acceptances
o bank certificates of deposit
o commercial paper
o high quality short-term debt instruments, including repurchase
agreements and
o shares issued by open-end Funds
"Disinterested Trustee" means a trustee of the Trust who is not an
"interested person" of the Trust within the meaning of Section 2(a)(19) of
the 1940 and who would be required to make a report under this Code solely
by reason of being a Trustee.
"Fund" means an investment company registered under the 1940 Act.
"Initial Public Offering" means an offering of securities registered under
the Securities Act of 1933 (the "1933 Act"), the issuer of which,
immediately before the registration, was not subject to the reporting
requirements of Sections 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934.
"Investment Person" means
o any employee of the Trust (or of any company in a control relationship
to the Trust) who, in connection with his or her regular functions of
duties, makes or participates in making recommendations regarding the
purchase or sale of securities by a Touchstone Fund or
o any natural person who controls the Trust and who obtains information
concerning recommendations made to a Touchstone Fund regarding the
purchase or sale of securities by a Touchstone Fund
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"Limited Offering" means an offering that is exempt from registration under
the Securities Act of 1933 pursuant to Section 4(2) or Section 4(6), or
pursuant to Rule 504, Rule 505, or Rule 506 under the Securities Act of
1933.
"Purchase or sale of Covered Securities" includes, among other things, the
writing of an option to purchase or sell Covered Securities.
"Related Security" means:
o a security issued by the same issuer that issued the Covered Security
o a security issued by an issuer under common control with the issuer
that issued the Covered Security or
o a security that gives the holder any contractual right with respect to
the Covered Security, including options, warrants or other convertible
securities
"Compliance Officer " means any person designated by the Trust to
administer this Code or to review reports required by this Code.
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