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Contingencies | 9 Months Ended
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Sep. 30, 2014
Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract] |
Contingencies | 15. Contingencies The Company and its subsidiaries are involved in a number of legal proceedings concerning matters arising out of the conduct of their respective business activities and are periodically subject to governmental and regulatory examinations, information gathering requests, subpoenas, inquiries and investigations (collectively, governmental examinations). As of September 30, 2014, the Company and various of its subsidiaries were named as a defendant or were otherwise involved in nu merous legal proceedings and governmental examinations in various jurisdictions, both in and outside the U.S. The Company discloses its material legal proceedings and governmental examinations under Item 1. “Legal Proceedings” in Part II. “Other Informatio n”, and under “Legal Proceedings” in the Annual Report (collectively, Legal Proceedings). The Company has recorded liabilities for certain of its outstanding legal proceedings and governmental examinations. A liability is accrued when it is both (a) proba ble that a loss has occurred and (b) the amount of lo ss can be reasonably estimated. T here may be instances in which an exposure to loss exceeds the accrued liability. The Company evaluates, on a quarterly basis, developments in legal proceedings and gover nmental examinations that could cause an increase or decrease in the amount of the liability that has been previously accrued or a revision to the disclosed estimated range of possible losses, as applicable. The Company’s legal proceedings range from cas es brought by a single plaintiff to class actions with millions of putative class members. These legal proceedings, as well as governmental examinations, involve various lines of business of the Company and a variety of claims (including, but not limited t o, common law tort, contract, antitrust and consumer protection claims), some of which present novel factual allegations and/or unique legal theories. While some matters pending against the Company specify the damages claimed by the plaintiff, many seek an unspecified amount of damages or are at very early stages of the legal process. Even when the amount of damages claimed against the Company are stated, the claimed amount may be exaggerated and/or unsupported. As a result, some matters have not yet progre ssed sufficiently through discovery and/or development of important factual information and legal issues to enable the Company to estimate a range of possible loss. Other matters have progressed sufficiently through discovery and/or development of importa nt factual information and legal issues s o that the Company is able to estimate a range of possible loss. Accordingly, for those legal proceedings and governmental examination s disclosed or referred to in Legal Proceedings where a loss is reasonably possi ble in future periods, whether in excess of a related accrued liability or where there is no accrued liability, and for which the Company is able to estimate a range of possible loss, the current estimated range is zero to $350 million in exce ss o f any accrued liability related to the se matters. This aggregate range represents management’s estimate of possible loss with respect to these matters and is based on currently available information. This estimated range of possible loss does not represent the Company’s maximum loss exposure. The legal proceedings and governmental examinations underlying the estimated range will change from time to time and actual results may vary significantly from current estimate s. Based on its current knowledge, and ta king into consideration its litigation-related liabilities, the Company believes it is not a party to, nor are any of its properties the subject of, any pending legal proceeding or governmental examination that would have a material adverse effect on the C ompany’s consolidated financial condition or liquidity. However, in light of the uncertainties involved in such matters, the ultimate outcome of a particular matter could be material to the Company’s operating results for a particular period depending on, among other factors, the size of the loss or liability imposed and the level of the Company’s earnings for that period.

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- Definition The entire disclosure for commitments and contingencies. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 210 -SubTopic 10 -Section S99 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (SX 210.5-02.25) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6877327&loc=d3e13212-122682 Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 825 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6449706&loc=d3e16207-108621 Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 460 -SubTopic 10 -Section 50 -Paragraph 8 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6398077&loc=d3e12565-110249 Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 450 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 4 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=25496072&loc=d3e14435-108349 Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 440 -SubTopic 10 -Section 50 -Paragraph 2 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6394976&loc=d3e25287-109308 + Details
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