Special Charges (Notes)

9 Months Ended

Oct. 31, 2016

Restructuring and Related Activities [Abstract]

The following is a summary of the components of special charges:



	Three months ended October 31,						Nine months ended October 31,
	2016			2015			2016		2015
Employee severance and related costs	$	354		$	3,485		$	2,884	$	14,188
Litigation costs	(19		)	1,122			1,344		3,641
Voluntary early retirement program	—			(203		)	—		25,232
Other costs, net	1,165			427			1,708		933
Total special charges	$	1,500		$	4,831		$	5,936	$	43,994

Special charges generally include expenses incurred related to employee severance, certain litigation costs, acquisitions, excess facility costs, and asset related charges.

We offered the voluntary early retirement program in North America during the three months ended April 30, 2015 in which 110 employees elected to participate. The costs presented here are for severance benefits.

Employee severance and related costs include severance benefits and notice pay. These rebalance charges generally represent the aggregate of numerous unrelated rebalance plans which impact several employee groups, none of which is individually material to our financial position or results of operations. We determine termination benefit amounts based on employee status, years of service, and local statutory requirements. We record the charge for estimated severance benefits in the quarter that the rebalance plan is approved.

Approximately 87% of the employee severance and related costs for the nine months ended October 31, 2016 were paid during the period. We expect to pay the remainder during the fiscal year ending January 31, 2017. Substantially all of the employee severance and related costs for the nine months ended October 31, 2015 were paid during the fiscal year ending January 31, 2016. There were no significant modifications to the amount of those charges.

Litigation costs consist of professional service fees for services rendered, related to patent litigation involving us, EVE, and Synopsys regarding emulation technology.

Accrued special charges are included in accrued and other liabilities in the condensed consolidated balance sheets. The following table shows changes in accrued special charges during the nine months ended October 31, 2016:



	Accrued special charges as of		Charges during the nine months ended		Payments during the nine months ended			Accrued special charges as of
	January 31, 2016		October 31, 2016		October 31, 2016			October 31, 2016
Employee severance and related costs	$	1,935	$	2,884	$	(4,232	)	$	587
Litigation costs	311		1,344		(1,152		)	503
Other costs, net	760		1,708		(2,069		)	399
Total accrued special charges	$	3,006	$	5,936	$	(7,453	)	$	1,489