Commitments, Contingencies and Litigation

9 Months Ended

Jan. 02, 2022

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]

Commitments, Contingencies and Litigation

Commitments, Contingencies and Litigation

Litigation and Other Legal Matters

In the ordinary course of business, the Company and its subsidiaries are routinely defendants in or parties to pending and threatened legal actions and proceedings, including actions brought on behalf of various classes of claimants. These actions and proceedings are generally based on alleged violations of environmental, anticompetition, employment, contract and other laws. In some of these actions and proceedings, claims for substantial monetary damages are asserted against the Company and its subsidiaries. In the ordinary course of business, the Company and its subsidiaries are also subject to regulatory and governmental examinations, information gathering requests, inquiries, investigations, and threatened legal actions and proceedings. In connection with formal and informal inquiries by federal, state, local and foreign agencies, the Company and its subsidiaries receive numerous requests, subpoenas and orders for documents, testimony and information in connection with various aspects of their activities.

European Competition Investigations

Certain of the Company’s European subsidiaries had received subpoenas and requests for documents and, in some cases, interviews from, and have had on-site inspections conducted by, the competition authorities of Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands relating to conduct and anticompetitive practices of certain industrial battery participants. For additional information regarding these matters, see Note 19 - Commitments, Contingencies and Litigation to the Consolidated Financial Statements contained in the 2021 Annual Report. As of January 2, 2022 and March 31, 2021, the Company did not have a reserve balance related to these matters.

The precise scope, timing and time period at issue, as well as the final outcome of the investigations or customer claims, remain uncertain. Accordingly, the Company’s estimate may change from time to time, and actual losses could vary.

Environmental Issues

As a result of its operations, the Company is subject to various federal, state, and local, as well as international environmental laws and regulations and is exposed to the costs and risks of registering, handling, processing, storing, transporting, and disposing of hazardous substances, especially lead and acid. The Company’s operations are also subject to federal, state, local and international occupational safety and health regulations, including laws and regulations relating to exposure to lead in the workplace. The Company believes that it has adequate reserves to satisfy its environmental liabilities.

Lead, Foreign Currency Forward Contracts and Swaps

To stabilize its lead costs and reduce volatility from currency and interest rate movements, the Company entered into contracts with financial institutions. The vast majority of lead and foreign currency contracts are for a period not extending beyond one year. The Company also entered into cross currency fixed interest rate swap agreements to hedge its net investments in foreign operations against future volatility in the exchange rates between U.S. Dollars and Euros and these agreements mature on December 15, 2027. Please refer to Note 7 - Derivative Financial Instruments for more details.