Final answer:
To terminate a 12-b1 fee, an investor can either sell their shares in the mutual fund that charges the fee or, less commonly, a fund may eliminate the fee with a board or shareholder vote.
Step-by-step explanation:
The term '12-b1 fee' refers to a fee that mutual funds may charge for the costs associated with marketing and distributing fund shares, and is included in a fund's annual operating expenses. To terminate a 12-b1 fee, an investor usually has a couple of options. First, they can sell the shares of the fund that charges the fee and buy shares of a fund that does not. This terminates the fees for that investor as they no longer hold that fund. Second, sometimes, if enough investors protest or if the fund managers decide it is in the best interest of shareholders, the fund itself may eliminate the fee. This would require a majority vote from the fund's board of directors or the existing shareholders. Consequently, individual investors have limited power to directly terminate these fees, but they can express their dissatisfaction to the fund managers or opt for funds with lower or no 12-b1 fees.