Litigation	9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2012
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
Litigation	Litigation In connection with the acquisition of Fiberxon LLC (“Fiberxon”) in July 2007, MRV recorded a potential deferred consideration payable related to post-acquisition obligations of MRV pursuant to the purchase agreement. In June 2012, the Company and Source Photonics, LLC (“Source Photonics”), a former subsidiary of the Company that the Company is obligated to indemnify with respect to certain litigation, entered into a Settlement and Mutual Release Agreement with certain former officers, directors and stockholders of Fiberxon (collectively, the “Fiberxon Plaintiffs”) to settle claims among the Company, Source Photonics and the Fiberxon Plaintiffs. Pursuant to the settlement agreement MRV paid $2.4 million to the Fiberxon Plaintiffs in the third quarter in consideration for the mutual release of the parties for all claims related to the Company's acquisition of Fiberxon in July 2007, and other claims and lawsuits held or filed by the Fiberxon Plaintiffs and the Company. An additional $2.2 million accrued reserve was released in connection with the settlement agreement. See Item 2, "Management's Discussion and Analysis to Consolidated Financial Statements," Quarterly Comparison, Other Gain (Loss), Net. In connection with the Company's past stock option grant practices, MRV and certain of its former directors and officers have been subjected to a number of stockholder lawsuits. In June 2008, MRV announced that the Board of Directors, based on information provided by management, and in consultation with management, concluded that the financial statements and the related reports of our independent public accountants should not be relied upon due to MRV's intention to restate its financial results from 2002 through 2008 to correct its accounting for option grants and other issues. From June to August 2008, five purported stockholder derivative and securities class action lawsuits were filed in the U.S. District Court in the Central District of California and one derivative lawsuit was filed in the Superior Court of the State of California against the Company and certain of MRV's former officers and directors, seeking to recover from the defendants unspecified compensatory and punitive damages, to require MRV to undertake reforms to corporate governance and internal control procedures, to obtain an accounting of stock option grants found to be improper, to impose a constructive trust over stock options and proceeds derived therefrom, to disgorge from any of the defendants who received allegedly improper stock options the profits obtained therefrom, to rescind improperly priced options, and to recover costs of suit, including legal and other professional fees and other equitable relief. The class action lawsuits were settled in November 2010, and the federal and California state derivative lawsuits are on-going. To date, a majority of the costs related to the Company's and defendants' defense of these actions have been paid by the Company's insurance carriers under its director and officer insurance policies, including the securities class action settlement. However, in this quarter we have accrued for estimated requests for payment for services of defense counsel and other parties through September 30, 2012 that exceed the limits of the insurance policy by $0.6 million. We have been asked to advance funds to cover purported indemnification obligations for our past directors and officers who are defendants in this matter, and will continue to incur our own legal expenses. Any such future obligations are not determinable at this time. From time to time, MRV has received notices from third parties alleging possible infringement of patents with respect to product features or manufacturing processes. Management believes such notices are common in the communications industry because of the large number of patents that have been filed on these subjects. The Company's policy is to discuss these notices with the parties in an effort to demonstrate that MRV's products and/or processes do not violate any patents. The Company has been involved in such discussions with International Business Machines, Ortel Communications, Ltd., Nortel Networks Corporation, Rockwell Automation, Inc., The Lemelson Foundation, Finisar Corporation and Apcon, Inc. in the past, and is currently in discussions with Alcatel-Lucent. MRV and its subsidiaries have been named as a defendant in other lawsuits involving matters that the Company considers routine to the nature of its business. Management is of the opinion that the ultimate resolution of such matters will not have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results and financial condition.

Litigation

In connection with the acquisition of Fiberxon LLC (“Fiberxon”) in July 2007, MRV recorded a potential deferred consideration payable related to post-acquisition obligations of MRV pursuant to the purchase agreement. In June 2012, the Company and Source Photonics, LLC (“Source Photonics”), a former subsidiary of the Company that the Company is obligated to indemnify with respect to certain litigation, entered into a Settlement and Mutual Release Agreement with certain former officers, directors and stockholders of Fiberxon (collectively, the “Fiberxon Plaintiffs”) to settle claims among the Company, Source Photonics and the Fiberxon Plaintiffs.

Pursuant to the settlement agreement MRV paid $2.4 million to the Fiberxon Plaintiffs in the third quarter in consideration for the mutual release of the parties for all claims related to the Company's acquisition of Fiberxon in July 2007, and other claims and lawsuits held or filed by the Fiberxon Plaintiffs and the Company. An additional $2.2 million accrued reserve was released in connection with the settlement agreement. See Item 2, "Management's Discussion and Analysis to Consolidated Financial Statements," Quarterly Comparison, Other Gain (Loss), Net.

In connection with the Company's past stock option grant practices, MRV and certain of its former directors and officers have been subjected to a number of stockholder lawsuits. In June 2008, MRV announced that the Board of Directors, based on information provided by management, and in consultation with management, concluded that the financial statements and the related reports of our independent public accountants should not be relied upon due to MRV's intention to restate its financial results from 2002 through 2008 to correct its accounting for option grants and other issues. From June to August 2008, five purported stockholder derivative and securities class action lawsuits were filed in the U.S. District Court in the Central District of California and one derivative lawsuit was filed in the Superior Court of the State of California against the Company and certain of MRV's former officers and directors, seeking to recover from the defendants unspecified compensatory and punitive damages, to require MRV to undertake reforms to corporate governance and internal control procedures, to obtain an accounting of stock option grants found to be improper, to impose a constructive trust over stock options and proceeds derived therefrom, to disgorge from any of the defendants who received allegedly improper stock options the profits obtained therefrom, to rescind improperly priced options, and to recover costs of suit, including legal and other professional fees and other equitable relief.

The class action lawsuits were settled in November 2010, and the federal and California state derivative lawsuits are on-going. To date, a majority of the costs related to the Company's and defendants' defense of these actions have been paid by the Company's insurance carriers under its director and officer insurance policies, including the securities class action settlement. However, in this quarter we have accrued for estimated requests for payment for services of defense counsel and other parties through September 30, 2012 that exceed the limits of the insurance policy by $0.6 million. We have been asked to advance funds to cover purported indemnification obligations for our past directors and officers who are defendants in this matter, and will continue to incur our own legal expenses. Any such future obligations are not determinable at this time.

From time to time, MRV has received notices from third parties alleging possible infringement of patents with respect to product features or manufacturing processes. Management believes such notices are common in the communications industry because of the large number of patents that have been filed on these subjects. The Company's policy is to discuss these notices with the parties in an effort to demonstrate that MRV's products and/or processes do not violate any patents. The Company has been involved in such discussions with International Business Machines, Ortel Communications, Ltd., Nortel Networks Corporation, Rockwell Automation, Inc., The Lemelson Foundation, Finisar Corporation and Apcon, Inc. in the past, and is currently in discussions with Alcatel-Lucent.

MRV and its subsidiaries have been named as a defendant in other lawsuits involving matters that the Company considers routine to the nature of its business. Management is of the opinion that the ultimate resolution of such matters will not have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results and financial condition.