Litigation and Other Contingencies

3 Months Ended

Aug. 31, 2015

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]

Litigation and Other Contingencies

Litigation and Other Contingencies

Cintas is subject to legal proceedings, insurance receipts, legal settlements and claims arising from the ordinary course of its business, including personal injury, customer contract, environmental and employment claims. In the opinion of management, the aggregate liability, if any, with respect to such ordinary course of business actions will not have a material adverse effect on the consolidated financial position, consolidated results of operations or consolidated cash flows of Cintas.

Cintas is party to additional litigation not considered in the ordinary course of business, including the litigation discussed below. Cintas is a defendant in a purported Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) systemic gender discrimination lawsuit, Mirna E. Serrano, et al. v. Cintas Corporation (Serrano), filed on May 10, 2004, and pending in the United States District Court, Eastern District of Michigan, Southern Division. The Serrano plaintiffs alleged that Cintas discriminated against women in hiring into various service sales representative (SSR) positions in the Rental Uniforms and Ancillary Products operating segment. On November 15, 2005, the EEOC intervened in the Serrano lawsuit. The Serrano plaintiffs seek lost pay, injunctive relief, compensatory damages, punitive damages, attorneys' fees and other remedies on behalf of unsuccessful female candidates for SSR positions. On October 27, 2008, the United States District Court in the Eastern District of Michigan granted summary judgment in favor of Cintas limiting the scope of the action to female applicants for SSR positions at Cintas locations within the state of Michigan. Consequently, all claims brought by or on behalf of female applicants for SSR positions outside of the state of Michigan were dismissed. Similarly, any claims brought by the EEOC on behalf of similarly situated female applicants outside of the state of Michigan have also been dismissed from the Serrano lawsuit. In September 2010, the Court in Serrano dismissed all private individual claims and all claims of the EEOC and the 13 individuals it claimed to represent. The EEOC appealed the District Court's summary judgment decisions and various other rulings to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. On November 9, 2012, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the District Court's opinion and remanded the claims back to the District Court. On April 16, 2013, Cintas filed with the United States Supreme Court a Petition for a Writ of Certiorari seeking to review the judgment of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. On October 7, 2013, the Court denied Cintas’ Petition, thus remanding the claims back to the District Court consistent with the Sixth Circuit Court’s November 9, 2012 decision.

The litigation discussed above, if decided or settled adversely to Cintas, may result in liability material to Cintas' consolidated financial condition, consolidated results of operation or consolidated cash flows and could increase costs of operations on an ongoing basis. Any estimated liability relating to these proceedings is not determinable at this time. Cintas may enter into discussions regarding settlement of these and other lawsuits, and may enter into settlement agreements if it believes such settlement is in the best interest of Cintas' shareholders.