Commitments, Contingencies and Guarantees

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2020

Commitments And Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]

Commitments, Contingencies and Guarantees

16. Commitments, Contingencies and Guarantees

Commitments

a. The Company has a partnership with a supplier of raw materials that mines and processes sodium-based mineral deposits.   The Company purchases the majority of its sodium-based raw material requirements from the partnership. The partnership agreement terminates upon two years’ written notice by either partner.  Under the partnership agreement, the Company has an annual commitment to purchase 240,000 tons of sodium-based raw materials at the prevailing market price.  The Company is not engaged in any other material transactions with the partnership or the partner supplier.  

b. As of September 30, 2020, the Company had commitments of approximately $284.3.  These commitments include the purchase of raw materials, packaging supplies and services from its vendors at market prices to enable the Company to respond quickly to changes in customer orders or requirements, as well as costs associated with licensing and promotion agreements.

c. As of September 30, 2020, the Company had various guarantees and letters of credit totaling $4.1.     

d. In connection with the Company’s acquisition of Agro BioSciences, Inc. on January 17, 2017, the Company was obligated to pay an additional amount of up to $25.0 based on sales performance in 2019. The initial fair value of this contingent liability was $17.8, which was established in the purchase price allocation.  In April 2020, a payment of $14.5 was paid to settle the liability.   

In connection with the acquisition in 2018 of Passport Food Safety Solutions, Inc. (the “Passport Acquisition”), the Company is obligated to pay an additional amount of up to $25.0 based on sales performance through 2020.  The initial fair value of this contingent liability was $7.3, which was established in the purchase price allocation.  During the second quarter of 2019, the Company recorded a reduction in fair value of the entire $7.3 Passport contingent liability based on the revised valuation due to updated sales forecasts.  The reduction was recorded in SG&A in the SPD segment.  There was no change in the contingent liability in the first nine months of 2020 and it will be reassessed at December 31, 2020.  

In connection with the Flawless Acquisition, the Company is obligated to pay an additional amount of up to $425.0 based on sales performance through 2021.  The initial fair value of this contingent liability of $182.0 was established in the purchase price allocation.  During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020 the Company reduced the fair value of the contingent liability associated with the Flawless Acquisition by $51.0 and $72.0, respectively, based on updated sales forecasts.  As a result of these adjustments and further adjustments in 2019, the fair value of this contingent liability was $120.0 as of September 30, 2020.  The change in fair value was recorded within the Consumer Domestic and Consumer International segments.  The contingent liability is remeasured at each balance sheet date until the contingency is resolved.  The liability is expected to be paid in the first half of 2022.  

Legal proceedings

e. The Company was named as a defendant in a breach of contract action filed by Scantibodies Laboratory, Inc. (the “Plaintiff”) on April 1, 2014, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.  

The complaint alleged, among other things, that the Company (i) breached two agreements for the manufacture and supply of pregnancy and ovulation test kits by switching suppliers, (ii) failed to give Plaintiff the proper notice, (iii) failed to reimburse Plaintiff for costs and expenses under the agreements and (iv) misrepresented its future requirements.  The complaint sought compensatory and punitive damages in an amount in excess of $20.0, as well as declaratory relief, statutory prejudgment interest and attorneys’ fees and costs.

On September 19, 2018, the trial court granted the Company’s motion for summary judgment, dismissing all claims brought by the Plaintiff as a matter of law.  The Plaintiff appealed that decision, and the 2^nd Circuit Court of Appeals reversed it in April 2020, remanding the case back to the lower court for a jury trial.  The parties thereafter resolved this dispute in the third quarter of 2020, for an amount immaterial to the Company.

f. In addition, in conjunction with the Company’s acquisition and divestiture activities, the Company entered into select guarantees and indemnifications of performance with respect to the fulfillment of the Company’s commitments under applicable purchase and sale agreements.  The arrangements generally indemnify the buyer or seller for damages associated with breach of contract, inaccuracies in representations and warranties surviving the closing date and satisfaction of liabilities and commitments retained under the applicable contract.  Representations and warranties that survive the closing date generally survive for periods up to five years or the expiration of the applicable statutes of limitations.  Potential losses under the indemnifications are generally limited to a portion of the original transaction price, or to other lesser specific dollar amounts for select provisions.  With respect to sale transactions, the Company also routinely enters into non-competition agreements for varying periods of time.  Guarantees and indemnifications with respect to acquisition and divestiture activities, if triggered, could have a materially adverse impact on the Company’s financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

g. In addition to the matters described above, from time to time in the ordinary course of its business the Company is the subject of, or party to, various pending or threatened legal, regulatory or governmental actions or other proceedings, including, without limitation, those relating to, intellectual property, commercial transactions, product liability, purported consumer class actions, employment matters, antitrust, environmental, health, safety and other compliance related matters.  Such proceedings are generally subject to considerable uncertainty and their outcomes, and any related damages, may not be reasonably predictable or estimable.   Any such proceedings could result in an adverse outcome on the Company’s business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.