Basis of Presentation

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2012

Basis of Presentation [Abstract]

Basis of Presentation

1.  Basis of Presentation

The accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto contain all adjustments, consisting only of normal recurring adjustments, necessary to present fairly, in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America, the financial position of MidSouth Bancorp, Inc. (the "Company") and its subsidiaries as of September 30, 2012 and the results of their operations and their cash flows for the periods presented. The interim financial information should be read in conjunction with the annual consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto included in the Company's 2011 Annual Report on Form 10-K.

The results of operations for the nine month period ended September 30, 2012 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the entire year.

Use of Estimates – The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reported period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies — The accounting and reporting policies of the Company conform with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America and general practices within the banking industry. There have been no material changes or developments in the application of accounting principles or in our evaluation of the accounting estimates and the underlying assumptions or methodologies that we believe to be Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates as disclosed in our 2011 Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements — In April 2011, the FASB issued ASU No. 2011-03, Transfers and Servicing (Topic 860): Reconsideration of Effective Control for Repurchase Agreements. The amendments in this Update remove from the assessment of effective control (1) the criterion requiring the transferor to have the ability to repurchase or redeem the financial assets on substantially the agreed terms, even in the event of default by the transferee, and (2) the collateral maintenance implementation guidance related to that criterion. Other criteria applicable to the assessment of effective control are not changed by the amendments in this Update. ASU No. 2011-03 was effective for the quarter ended March 31, 2012 and did not have a material impact on the Company's results of operations, financial position or disclosures.

In May 2011, the FASB issued ASU 2011-04, Fair Value Measurement (Topic 820): Amendments to Achieve Common Fair Value Measurement and Disclosure Requirements in U.S. GAAP and IFRSs. The amendments in this Update result in common fair value measurement and disclosure requirements in U.S. GAAP and IFRSs. Consequently, the amendments change the wording used to describe many of the requirements in U.S. GAAP for measuring fair value and for disclosing information about fair value measurements. For many of the requirements, the Board does not intend for the amendments in this Update to result in a change in the application of the requirements in Topic 820. The Update also reflects the FASB's consideration of the different characteristics of public and non-public entities and the needs of users of their financial statements. Non-public entities will be exempt from a number of the new disclosure requirements. The amendments in this Update are to be applied prospectively. For public entities, the amendments were effective for the quarter ended March 31, 2012 and did not have a material impact on the Company's results of operations, financial position or disclosures.

In July 2012, the FASB issued ASU 2012-02, Intangibles – Goodwill and Other (Topic 350): Testing Indefinite-Lived Intangible Assets for Impairment. The amendments in this Update are intended to reduce cost and complexity by providing an entity with the option to make a qualitative assessment about the likelihood that an indefinite-lived intangible asset is impaired to determine whether it should perform a quantitative impairment test. The Update also enhances consistency of impairment testing guidance among long-lived asset categories by permitting entities to assess qualitative factors to determine whether it is necessary to calculate the asset's fair value when testing for impairment, which is equivalent to the impairment testing requirements for other long-lived assets. Under the amendments in this Update, an entity will have an option not to calculate annually the fair value of an indefinite-lived intangible asset if the entity determines that it is not more-likely-than-not that the asset is impaired. The Update is effective for annual and interim impairment tests performed for fiscal years beginning after September 15, 2012. Early adoption is permitted, including for annual and interim impairment tests performed as of a date before July 27, 2012, if a public entity's financial statements for the most recent annual or interim period have not yet been issued or, for nonpublic entities, have not yet been made available for issuance. The adoption of ASU 2012-02 will have an effect on how the Company performs its test for impairment of goodwill, but the adoption of this ASU is not expected to have a material impact on the Company's results of operations, financial position or disclosures.