New Accounting Standards (Policies)

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2022

Accounting Changes and Error Corrections [Abstract]

Basis of Presentation

The unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements of FTI Consulting, Inc., including its consolidated subsidiaries (collectively, the “Company,” “we,” “our” or “FTI Consulting”), presented herein, have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“GAAP”) and under the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) for interim financial information. Some of the information and footnote disclosures normally included in annual financial statements have been condensed or omitted pursuant to those rules and regulations. Certain prior period amounts have been reclassified to conform to the current period presentation. In management’s opinion, the interim financial statements reflect all adjustments that are necessary for a fair presentation of the results for the interim periods presented. All adjustments made were normal recurring accruals. Results of operations for the interim periods presented herein are not necessarily indicative of results of operations for a full year. These financial statements should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto contained in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021 filed with the SEC.

Recently Adopted Accounting Standards and Accounting Standards Not Yet Adopted

In August 2020, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") 2020-06 ("ASU 2020-06"), Debt—Debt with Conversion and Other Options (Subtopic 470-20) and Derivatives and Hedging—Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity (Subtopic 815-40): Accounting for Convertible Instruments and Contracts in an Entity’s Own Equity, which simplifies accounting for convertible instruments by removing major separation models required under current GAAP. The ASU also removes certain settlement conditions that are required for equity contracts to qualify for the derivative scope exception and simplifies the diluted earnings per share calculation in certain events. On January 1, 2022, we adopted ASU 2020-06 using the modified retrospective method and recorded a cumulative-effect adjustment of approximately $22.1 million to the beginning balance of retained earnings at the date of adoption and a $16.4 million net increase to "Long-term debt, net" on the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets. As permitted by the guidance, prior comparative periods will not be adjusted under this method.

Pursuant to ASU 2020-06, we are no longer permitted to separately account for the liability and equity components of convertible debt instruments. As such, the carrying amount of our 2.0% convertible senior notes due 2023 ("2023 Convertible Notes") is recognized as a liability as of March 31, 2022 on the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets. The ASU 2020-06 adoption also resulted in the derecognition of the embedded conversion option, net of tax effects, of approximately $34.1 million, which is included in “Additional paid-in capital,” as well as the derecognition of the related deferred tax liabilities of approximately $4.3 million on the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets.

The net effect of the adoption in the current and future periods as compared to prior periods is to reduce non-cash interest expense, or increase net income, as there is no longer a discount from the separation of the conversion feature within equity. The discount from recognition of debt issuance costs will be amortized over the effective life of the 2023 Convertible Notes using the effective interest method.

ASU 2020-06 also no longer allows the use of the treasury stock method for convertible instruments for purposes of calculating diluted earnings per share and instead requires application of the if-converted method. Under that method, diluted earnings per share will generally be calculated assuming that all of the convertible debt instruments were converted solely into shares of common stock at the beginning of the reporting period unless the result would be anti-dilutive. Effective January 1, 2022, pursuant to the terms of the indenture, dated as of August 20, 2018, as amended by the first supplemental indenture, dated as of January 1, 2022 (the "First Supplemental Indenture"), between us and U.S. Bank National Association, as trustee (as so amended, the "Indenture"), the principal amount of the 2023 Convertible Notes being converted is required to be paid in cash and only the premium due upon conversion, if any, is permitted to be settled in shares, cash or a combination of shares and cash. Consequently, the if-converted method produces a similar result as the treasury stock method, which was used prior to the adoption of ASU 2020-06 for the 2023 Convertible Notes.

Accounting Standards Not Yet Adopted

In November 2021, the FASB issued ASU 2021-10, Government Assistance (Topic 832), Disclosures by Business Entities about Government Assistance, which requires entities to provide disclosures on significant government assistance transactions for annual reporting periods. The disclosures include information around the nature of the assistance, the related accounting policies used to account for government assistance, the effect of government assistance on the entity’s financial statements, and any significant terms and conditions of the agreements, including commitments and contingencies. The new standard is effective for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2021 and impacts only annual financial statement footnote disclosures. The Company is in the process of evaluating the impact of this new guidance on its consolidated financial statements.