Note 13 - Commitments and Contingencies

6 Months Ended

Jun. 01, 2024

Notes to Financial Statements

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Text Block]

Note 13: Commitments and Contingencies

Environmental Matters 

We are involved in environmental investigations, clean-up activities and administrative proceedings related to environmental compliance matters at former and current operating facilities.   We have also been identified as a potentially responsible party (“PRP”) under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (“CERCLA”) and/or similar state laws that impose liability for costs relating to the clean-up of contamination resulting from past spills, disposal or other release of hazardous substances associated with landfills and/or hazardous waste sites. As a PRP, we may be required to pay a share of the costs of investigation and clean-up of these sites. We are subject to similar laws in some of the countries where current and former facilities are located. Our environmental, health and safety department monitors compliance with applicable laws on a global basis. To the extent we can reasonably estimate the amount of our probable liabilities for environmental matters, we establish an undiscounted financial provision. We recorded liabilities of $4,426 and $5,034 as of June 1, 2024 and December 2, 2023, respectively, for probable and reasonably estimable environmental remediation costs. Of the amount reserved, $1,745 and $2,301 as of June 1, 2024 and December 2, 2023, respectively, is attributable to a facility we own in Simpsonville, South Carolina as a result of our Royal Adhesives acquisition that is a designated site under CERCLA.

While uncertainties exist with respect to the amounts and timing of the ultimate environmental liabilities, based on currently available information, we have concluded that these matters, individually or in the aggregate, will not have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition or cash flow.

Other Legal Proceedings 

From time to time and in the ordinary course of business, we are a party to, or a target of, lawsuits, claims, investigations and proceedings, including product liability, personal injury, contract, patent and intellectual property, environmental, health and safety, tax and employment matters. While we are unable to predict the outcome of these matters, we have concluded, based upon currently available information, that the ultimate resolution of any pending matter, individually or in the aggregate, including the asbestos litigation described in the following paragraphs, will not have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition or cash flow.

We have been named as a defendant in lawsuits in which plaintiffs have alleged injury due to products containing asbestos manufactured more than 35 years ago. The plaintiffs generally bring these lawsuits against multiple defendants and seek damages (both actual and punitive) in very large amounts. In many cases, plaintiffs are unable to demonstrate that they have suffered any compensable injuries or that the injuries suffered were the result of exposure to products manufactured by us. We are typically dismissed as a defendant in such cases without payment. If the plaintiff presents evidence indicating that compensable injury occurred as a result of exposure to our products, the case is generally settled for an amount that reflects the seriousness of the injury, the length, intensity and character of exposure to products containing asbestos, the number and solvency of other defendants in the case, and the jurisdiction in which the case has been brought.

A significant portion of the defense costs and settlements in asbestos-related litigation is paid by third parties, including indemnification pursuant to the provisions of a 1976 agreement under which we acquired a business from a third party. Currently, this third party is defending and paying settlement amounts, under a reservation of rights, in most of the asbestos cases tendered to the third party.

In addition to the indemnification arrangements with third parties, we have insurance policies that generally provide coverage for asbestos liabilities, including defense costs. Historically, insurers have paid a significant portion of our defense costs and settlements in asbestos-related litigation. However, certain of our insurers are insolvent. We have entered into cost-sharing agreements with our insurers that provide for the allocation of defense costs and settlements and judgments in asbestos-related lawsuits. These agreements require, among other things, that we fund a share of settlements and judgments allocable to years in which the responsible insurer is insolvent.

A summary of the number of and settlement amounts for asbestos-related lawsuits and claims is as follows:

	Six Months Ended				3 Years Ended
	June 1, 2024		June 3, 2023		December 2, 2023
Lawsuits and claims settled		7		5		18
Settlement amounts	$	1,033	$	3,495	$	4,581
Insurance payments received or expected to be received	$	730	$	1,944	$	2,629

We do not believe that it would be meaningful to disclose the aggregate number of asbestos-related lawsuits filed against us because relatively few of these lawsuits are known to involve exposure to asbestos-containing products that we manufactured. Rather, we believe it is more meaningful to disclose the number of lawsuits that are settled and result in a payment to the plaintiff. To the extent we can reasonably estimate the amount of our probable liabilities for pending asbestos-related claims, we establish a financial provision and a corresponding receivable for insurance recoveries. 

In February 2024, the named plaintiffs in Rouse et al. v. H.B. Fuller Company et al. filed a third amended complaint in their lawsuit against the Company and one of its subsidiaries, which was initiated in September 2022.  The suit is pending in the federal District of Minnesota and seeks damages arising from property damage attributed to alleged defects in grout sold by the Company or its affiliates. The named plaintiffs seek to represent a class but have not yet moved for class certification. The Company intends to vigorously defend itself against the claims outlined in this lawsuit. As of June 1, 2024, we are unable to estimate any possible loss or range of possible losses and have not recorded a loss contingency for this matter.

Based on currently available information, we have concluded that the resolution of any pending matter, including asbestos-related litigation, individually or in the aggregate, will not have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition or cash flow.