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Note 18 - Contingencies - Legal Proceedings
3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2020
Notes to Financial Statements  
Legal Matters and Contingencies [Text Block]

18.  Contingencies - Legal Proceedings

In the ordinary course of business, we and our affiliates are involved in various legal proceedings alleging, among other things, liability issues or breach of contract or tortious conduct in connection with the performance of services and/or materials provided, the various outcomes of which cannot be predicted with certainty. We and our affiliates are also subject to government inquiries in the ordinary course of business seeking information concerning our compliance with government construction contracting requirements and various laws and regulations, the outcomes which cannot be predicted with certainty.

Some of the matters in which we or our joint ventures and affiliates are involved may involve compensatory, punitive, or other claims or sanctions that, if granted, could require us to pay damages or make other expenditures in amounts that are not probable to be incurred or cannot currently be reasonably estimated. In addition, in some circumstances our government contracts could be terminated, we could be suspended, debarred or incur other administrative penalties or sanctions, or payment of our costs could be disallowed. While any of our pending legal proceedings may be subject to early resolution as a result of our ongoing efforts to resolve the proceedings, whether or when any legal proceeding will be resolved is neither predictable nor guaranteed.

Accordingly, it is possible that future developments in such proceedings and inquiries could require us to (i) adjust existing accruals, or (ii) record new accruals that we did not originally believe to be probable or that could not be reasonably estimated. Such changes could be material to our financial condition, results of operations and/or cash flows in any particular reporting period. In addition to matters that are considered probable for which the loss can be reasonably estimated, disclosure is also provided when it is reasonably possible and estimable that a loss will be incurred or when it is reasonably possible that the amount of a loss will exceed the amount recorded.

Liabilities relating to legal proceedings and government inquiries, to the extent that we have concluded such liabilities are probable and the amounts of such liabilities are reasonably estimable, are recorded in the consolidated balance sheets. The aggregate liabilities recorded as of  March 31, 2020 and 2019 related to these matters were immaterial. The aggregate range of possible loss related to (i) matters considered reasonably possible, and (ii) reasonably possible amounts in excess of accrued losses recorded for probable loss contingencies, including those related to liquidated damages, could have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements if they become probable and the reasonably estimable amount is determined.

On  August 13, 2019, a securities class action was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California against the Company, James H. Roberts, our former President and Chief Executive Officer, and Jigisha Desai, our former Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer and current Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer. An Amended Complaint was filed on February 20, 2020 that, among other things, added Laurel Krzeminski, our former Chief Financial Officer, as a defendant. The amended complaint is brought on behalf of an alleged class of persons or entities that acquired our common stock between  April 30, 2018 and  October 24, 2019, and alleges claims arising under Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder. The Amended Complaint seeks damages based on allegations that in the Company’s SEC filings the defendants made false and/or misleading statements and failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Company’s business, operations and prospects. On May 20, 2020, the Court denied, in part, the Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss the Amended Complaint.  On January 21, 2021, the Court granted Plaintiff’s motion for class certification. We are in the pretrial stages of the litigation, and we cannot predict the outcome or consequences of this case, which we intend to defend vigorously. 

On October 23, 2019, a putative class action lawsuit was filed in the Superior Court of California, County of Santa Cruz against the Company, James H. Roberts, our former President and Chief Executive Officer; Laurel Krzeminski, our former Chief Financial Officer, and the then-serving Board of Directors on behalf of persons who acquired shares of Company common stock in the Company’s June 2018 merger with Layne. The complaint asserts causes of action under the Securities Act of 1933 and alleges that the registration statement and prospectus were negligently prepared and included materially false and misleading statements and failed to disclose facts required to be disclosed. On August 10, 2020, the Court sustained our demurrer dismissing the complaint with leave to amend.  On September 16, 2020, the plaintiff filed an amended complaint. We have filed a demurrer seeking to dismiss the amended complaint. We are in the preliminary stages of the litigation and, as a result, we cannot predict the outcome or consequences of the case, which we intend to defend vigorously.

On  May 6, 2020, a stockholder derivative lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California against James H. Roberts, our former President and Chief Executive Officer, Jigisha Desai, our former Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer and current Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer, Laurel Krzeminski, our former Chief Financial Officer, and our then-current Board of Directors (collectively, the “Individual Defendants”), and the Company, as a nominal defendant, asserting claims for breach of fiduciary duty, unjust enrichment, and violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that occurred between April 30, 2018 and October 24, 2019. The lawsuit alleges that the Individual Defendants knowingly inflated the Company’s revenue, income, and margins in violation of U.S. GAAP, which caused the results during the relevant periods to be materially false and misleading. The Complaint seeks monetary damages and corporate governance reforms. The Court has ordered that the lawsuit in the derivative action be stayed until further order of the Court or until entry of a final judgment in the putative securities class action lawsuit filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. We are in the preliminary stages of the litigation and, as a result, we cannot predict the outcome or consequences of this case, which we intend to defend vigorously.

As of March 31, 2020, no liability related to above matters was recorded because we have concluded such liabilities are not probable and the amounts of such liabilities are not reasonably estimable.

In connection with our disclosure of the Audit Committee’s independent Investigation, we voluntarily contacted the San Francisco office of the SEC Division of Enforcement regarding the Investigation. The SEC has issued us subpoenas for documents in connection with the independent Investigation. We have produced documents to the SEC regarding the accounting issues identified during the independent Investigation and will continue to cooperate with the SEC in its investigation.