Kristi Maher
About Kristi Maher
Kristi A. Maher (born 1966) serves as Chief Compliance Officer (since January 2011) and Assistant Secretary of First Trust Intermediate Duration Preferred & Income Fund (FPF); she became International General Counsel of First Trust Advisors L.P. and First Trust Portfolios L.P. in February 2025, after serving as Deputy General Counsel previously . She holds a JD from DePaul University College of Law and a BS in Finance/Accounting from Miami University . For closed-end funds in the First Trust complex, executive officers (including the CCO) receive no compensation from the Funds for serving in such capacities; performance metrics like TSR, revenue, or EBITDA are not linked to her compensation at the fund level and are not disclosed in the proxy .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Evidence/Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Trust Advisors L.P./First Trust Portfolios L.P. | International General Counsel | Feb 2025–present | Also CCO of the Funds; previously Deputy General Counsel . |
| First Trust (corporate) | Deputy General Counsel | 2004–2025 | Tenure and title per LinkedIn profile . |
| Chapman and Cutler LLP | Associate | 1995–2004 | LinkedIn profile . |
| National Futures Association | Auditor | 1990–1992 | LinkedIn profile . |
External Roles
No public company directorships or external board roles are disclosed in the FPF proxy; none are listed on the cited public profile.
Fixed Compensation
| Item | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Compensation paid by FPF (Fund) for executive officer service | $0; the executive officers and the Interested Trustee receive no compensation from the Funds for serving in such capacities | |
| Compensation paid by First Trust Advisors/affiliates | Not disclosed in FPF proxy |
Performance Compensation
| Incentive Type | Metric | Weighting | Target | Actual | Payout | Vesting |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual cash/STI | Not disclosed for CCO at fund level | — | — | — | — | — |
| Equity/stock-based (RSUs/PSUs/options) | Not disclosed for CCO at fund level | — | — | — | — | — |
The FPF proxy does not provide executive-specific bonus metrics, targets, vesting schedules, or equity grants for the CCO; executive pay is borne by the adviser, not the Funds .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Item | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| FPF shares outstanding (Record Date Feb 19, 2025) | 60,847,827 shares | |
| Beneficial ownership by Trustees and executive officers as a group | Less than 1% of each Fund’s shares | |
| Individual beneficial ownership disclosure for Maher | Not separately disclosed in proxy | |
| Shares pledged as collateral | Not disclosed | |
| Ownership guidelines | Independent Trustees are expected to invest at least one year’s annual retainer in First Trust funds within three years; executive officer guidelines not disclosed |
Employment Terms
| Term | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Positions with FPF | Chief Compliance Officer; Assistant Secretary | |
| CCO effective date | Elected December 2010; effective January 1, 2011 | |
| Assistant Secretary since | Fund inception (indefinite term) | |
| Current adviser role | International General Counsel (First Trust Advisors/Portfolios), since Feb 2025 | |
| Contract term | Officers serve indefinite terms; no employment agreement disclosed at fund level | |
| Severance / Change-in-control | Not disclosed | |
| Clawback, tax gross-ups, deferred comp, pension/SERP, perquisites | Not disclosed for executive officers at fund level | |
| Compliance oversight cadence | CCO reports to Board; provides annual compliance report; meets privately with Independent Trustees each quarter |
Investment Implications
- Pay-for-performance linkage is not investor-facing at the fund level: executive officer compensation (including Maher) is paid by the adviser and not disclosed in the FPF proxy; therefore, no direct fund-level incentive metrics, vesting schedules, or equity alignment data can be analyzed for trading or governance signals from this document .
- Retention risk appears low given tenure: Maher has served as CCO since 2011 and advanced to International General Counsel in 2025, indicating institutional continuity in legal/compliance leadership across the First Trust fund complex .
- Alignment via share ownership is modest at the governance level: Trustees and executive officers as a group own less than 1% of FPF; individual executive officer holdings are not disclosed, limiting “skin-in-the-game” assessment for the CCO specifically .
- Governance and oversight structure is robust: the unitary board framework with standing committees (Audit, Valuation, Nominating & Governance) and quarterly private sessions with the CCO supports a strong compliance environment, reducing execution risk tied to compliance failures .
Note: For fund performance analysis (e.g., multi-year returns/TSR) and any adviser-level compensation details, consult the latest Form N-CSR and First Trust adviser disclosures, as these items are outside the scope of the FPF proxy’s executive compensation reporting .