Litigation and Contingencies

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2011

Litigation and Contingencies

Litigation and Contingencies

NOTE 12:   Litigation and Contingencies

Mexico Liftboat Incident

The Company is currently a defendant in three lawsuits filed in September and October 2011 related to the September 8, 2011 liftboat incident in the Gulf of Mexico.  The lawsuits are styled Derise, et al. v. Trinity Liftboat Services, LLC., et al., Myers, et al. v. Trinity Liftboat Services, L.L.C., et al., and Reed v. Trinity Liftboat Services, LLC, et al. The Derise and Myers cases and are pending in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas-Galveston Division and the Reed case is pending in the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana-Lafayette Division.  These matters related to the September 8, 2011 Mexico liftboat incident are at an early stage in the litigation process; accordingly, the Company currently cannot assess the probability of losses, or reasonably estimate a range of any potential losses related to these proceedings.  The Company intends to vigorously defend itself in these proceedings.

California Labor Class Action

On July 13, 2011, the Company was named as a defendant in a lawsuit styled Moncada, et al. v. Petroleum Geo-Services, et al. filed in the Superior Court of California in Kern County.  This is a wage-and-hour class action lawsuit where the plaintiffs claim that they were not properly compensated from June 2009 to April 2010 for meal and rest breaks, in addition to overtime pay.  This matter is at an early stage in the litigation process; accordingly, the Company currently cannot assess the probability of losses, or reasonably estimate a range of any potential losses related to the proceeding.  The Company intends to vigorously defend itself in this proceeding.

International Labor Claims

The Company has received adverse verdicts with respect to several international labor claims and is currently appealing these verdicts.  The Company had a provision of $2.7 million and $2.3 million, included in accrued expenses at September 30, 2011 and December 31, 2010, respectively, for estimated costs related to these claims.

Other Contingencies

The Company is party to various other claims and legal actions arising in the ordinary course of business.  Management is of the opinion that none of these claims and actions will have a material adverse impact on the Company’s financial position, results of operations, or cash flows.