This Shareholder Rebel Has A Cause Dogs Errant Executives Schwartz uses his fund's clout to keep management working for shareholders.(MUTUAL FUNDS)(MUTUAL FUND PROFILE)

Byline: KEN HOOVER

If you've heard of the Schwartz Value Fund before now, it's probably because you live in or near Bloomfield Hills, Mich.

Even though the $52 million fund has been around since 1983, most of its shareholders lived nearby. It was only last year that manager George Schwartz decided to register the fund for sale in all 50 states and make it available on fund supermarkets such as Charles Schwab's.

"Our time has come," said Schwartz, crowing that small-cap value funds like his are at the top of the mutual fund heap after several years of underperformance.

Schwartz, 57, describes himself as a classic value manager in the mold of Benjamin Graham and David Dodd, who wrote a 1934 book that became the blueprint for buying undervalued stocks.

The fund was up 4.7% for the year going into Friday, according to Morningstar Inc. It rose 9% in 2000 and 28.1% in 2001. Its performance earned it an IBD 36-Month Performance Rating of A+, meaning it's in the top 5% of all mutual funds.

There's another angle that makes the fund unusual. Schwartz is big on shareholder democracy. He's not afraid to use a little muscle when he doesn't like the way management is running companies in which his fund is invested.