COMMITMENTS, CONTINGENCIES AND LEGAL MATTERS

Commitments — As of October 2, 2016, we had unconditional purchase obligations during the next five fiscal years as follows (in thousands):



2017	$	993,500
2018	554,900
2019	455,200
2020	369,600
2021	358,900
Total	$	2,732,100

These obligations primarily represent amounts payable under purchase contracts for goods related to system-wide restaurant operations.

Legal matters — The Company assesses contingencies, including litigation contingencies, to determine the degree of probability and range of possible loss for potential accrual in its financial statements. An estimated loss contingency is accrued in the financial statements if it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated. Because litigation is inherently unpredictable, assessing contingencies is highly subjective and requires judgments about future events. When evaluating litigation contingencies, we may be unable to provide a meaningful estimate due to a number of factors, including the procedural status of the matter in question, the availability of appellate remedies, insurance coverage related to the claim or claims in question, the presence of complex or novel legal theories, and/or the ongoing discovery and development of information important to the matter. In addition, damage amounts claimed in litigation against us may be unsupported, exaggerated or unrelated to possible outcomes, and as such are not meaningful indicators of our potential liability or financial exposure. The Company regularly reviews contingencies to determine the adequacy of the accruals and related disclosures. The ultimate amount of loss may differ from these estimates.

Gessele v. Jack in the Box Inc. — In August 2010, five former employees instituted litigation in federal court in Oregon alleging claims under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act and Oregon wage and hour laws. The plaintiffs alleged that the Company failed to pay non-exempt employees for certain state-mandated breaks and improperly made payroll deductions for shoe purchases and for workers’ compensation expenses, and later added additional claims relating to timing of final pay and related wage and hour claims involving employees of a franchisee. The most recent complaint seeks damages of $45.0 million but does not provide a basis for that amount. In fiscal 2012, we accrued for a single claim for which we believe a loss is both probable and estimable; this accrued loss contingency did not have a material effect on our results of operations. We have not established a loss contingency accrual for those claims as to which we believe liability is not probable or estimable, and we plan to vigorously defend against this lawsuit. Nonetheless, an unfavorable resolution of this matter in excess of our current accrued loss contingencies could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, liquidity or financial condition.

Other legal matters — In addition to the matter described above, the Company is subject to normal and routine litigation brought by former, current or prospective employees, customers, franchisees, vendors, landlords, shareholders or others. We intend to defend ourselves in any such matters. Some of these matters may be covered, at least in part, by insurance. Our insurance liability (undiscounted) and reserves are established in part by using independent actuarial estimates of expected losses for reported claims and expected losses for claims incurred but not reported. Our estimated liability for general liability and workers’ compensation claims, which exceeded our self-insurance retention limits by $25.8 million as of September 27, 2015, was reduced by $21.7 million in 2016 due to a judgment paid by our insurance providers. We currently expect to be fully covered by our insurance providers for any amounts that may exceed our self-insurance retention limits. We believe that the ultimate determination of liability in connection with legal claims pending against us, if any, in excess of amounts already provided for such matters in the consolidated financial statements, will not have a material adverse effect on our business, our annual results of operations, liquidity or financial position; however, it is possible that our business, results of operations, liquidity, or financial condition could be materially affected in a particular future reporting period by the unfavorable resolution of one or more matters or contingencies during such period.

Lease guarantees — In connection with the sale of the distribution business, we have assigned the lease at one of our distribution centers to a third party. Under this agreement, which expires in 2017, the Company remains secondarily liable for the lease payments for which we were responsible under the original lease. As of October 2, 2016, the amount remaining under this lease guarantee totaled $0.7 million. We have not recorded a liability for this guarantee as the likelihood of the third party defaulting on the assignment agreements was deemed to be less than probable.