Note 6. Commitments and Contingent Liabilities

In the normal course of business, Pinnacle Financial has entered into off-balance sheet financial instruments which include commitments to extend credit (i.e., including unfunded lines of credit) and standby letters of credit. Commitments to extend credit are usually the result of lines of credit granted to existing borrowers under agreements that the total outstanding indebtedness will not exceed a specific amount during the term of the indebtedness. Typical borrowers are commercial concerns that use lines of credit to supplement their treasury management functions, thus their total outstanding indebtedness may fluctuate during any time period based on the seasonality of their business and the resultant timing of their cash flows. Other typical lines of credit are related to home equity loans granted to consumers. Commitments to extend credit generally have fixed expiration dates or other termination clauses and may require payment of a fee.

Standby letters of credit are generally issued on behalf of an applicant (our customer) to a specifically named beneficiary and are the result of a particular business arrangement that exists between the applicant and the beneficiary. Standby letters of credit have fixed expiration dates and are usually for terms of two years or less unless terminated beforehand due to criteria specified in the standby letter of credit. A typical arrangement involves the applicant routinely being indebted to the beneficiary for such items as inventory purchases, insurance, utilities, lease guarantees or other third party commercial transactions. The standby letter of credit would permit the beneficiary to obtain payment from Pinnacle Financial under certain prescribed circumstances. Subsequently, Pinnacle Financial would then seek reimbursement from the applicant pursuant to the terms of the standby letter of credit.

Pinnacle Financial follows the same credit policies and underwriting practices when making these commitments as it does for on-balance sheet instruments. Each customer's creditworthiness is evaluated on a case-by-case basis, and the amount of collateral obtained, if any, is based on management's credit evaluation of the customer. Collateral held varies but may include cash, real estate and improvements, marketable securities, accounts receivable, inventory, equipment, and personal property.

The contractual amounts of these commitments are not reflected in the consolidated financial statements and would only be reflected if drawn upon. Since many of the commitments are expected to expire without being drawn upon, the contractual amounts do not necessarily represent future cash requirements. However, should the commitments be drawn upon and should our customers default on their resulting obligation to us, Pinnacle Financial's maximum exposure to credit loss, without consideration of collateral, is represented by the contractual amount of those instruments.

A summary of Pinnacle Financial's total contractual amount for all off-balance sheet commitments at June 30, 2011 is as follows:

Commitments to extend credit		$	873,981,000
Standby letters of credit		$	84,389,000

At June 30, 2011, the fair value of Pinnacle Financial's standby letters of credit was $360,000. This amount represents the unamortized fee associated with these standby letters of credit and is included in the consolidated balance sheet of Pinnacle Financial. This fair value will decrease over time as the existing standby letters of credit approach their expiration dates.

Pinnacle National originates residential mortgage loans, sells them to third-party purchasers, and does not retain the servicing rights. These loans are originated internally and are primarily to borrowers in Pinnacle National's geographic market footprint. These sales are typically on a best efforts basis to investors that follow conventional government sponsored entities (GSE) and the Department of Housing and Urban Development/U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (HUD/VA) guidelines. Generally, loans sold to the HUD/VA are underwritten by Pinnacle National while the majority of the loans sold to other investors are underwritten by the purchaser of the loans.

Each purchaser has specific guidelines and criteria for sellers of loans, and the risk of credit loss with regard to the principal amount of the loans sold is generally transferred to the purchasers upon sale. While the loans are sold without recourse, the purchase agreements require Pinnacle National to make certain representations and warranties regarding the existence and sufficiency of file documentation and the absence of fraud by borrowers or other third parties such as appraisers in connection with obtaining the loan. If it is determined that the loans sold were in breach of these representations or warranties, Pinnacle National has obligations to either repurchase the loan for the unpaid principal balance and related investor fees or make the purchaser whole for the economic benefits of the loan.

From inception of Pinnacle National's mortgage department in January 2003 through June 30, 2011, Pinnacle National originated and sold approximately 9,700 mortgage loans totaling $2.06 billion to third-party purchasers. Of the approximately 9,700 mortgage loans, Pinnacle underwrote approximately 2,400 conventional loans at a 80% or less loan-to-value that were sold to other investors and 1,900 loans that were sold to the HUD/VA. To date, repurchase activity pursuant to the terms of these representations and warranties has been insignificant and has resulted in insignificant losses to Pinnacle National. The remaining mortgage loans were underwritten by the purchasers of those loans, but funded by Pinnacle until settlement with the purchaser.

Based on information currently available, management believes that it does not have significant exposure to contingent losses that may arise relating to the representations and warranties that it has made in connection with its mortgage loan sales.

Due to the current focus in foreclosure practices of financial institutions nationwide, Pinnacle National evaluated its foreclosure process related to home equity and consumer mortgage loans within its loan portfolio. At June 30, 2011, Pinnacle National has $675.2 million of home equity and consumer mortgage loans which are secured by first or second liens on residential properties. Foreclosure activity in this portfolio has been minimal. Any foreclosures on these loans are handled by designated Pinnacle National personnel and external legal counsel, as appropriate, following established policies regarding legal and regulatory requirements. Pinnacle National has not imposed any freezes on foreclosures. Based on information currently available, management believes that it does not have material exposure to faulty foreclosure practices.

Various legal claims also arise from time to time in the normal course of business. In the opinion of management, the resolution of these claims outstanding at June 30, 2011 will not have a material impact on Pinnacle Financial's financial statements.