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Commitments and Contingencies | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure Text Block Abstract |
Commitments and Contingencies | NOTE 13 Contingencies and commitments Contingencies In the ordinary course of business, the Company and its subsidiaries are subject to various pending and potential legal actions, arbitration proceedings, claims, investigations, examinations, information gathering requests, subpoenas, inquiries and matters relating to compliance with laws and regulations (collectively, legal proceedings). The Company discloses its material legal proceedings under Part I, Item 3. “Legal Proceedings.” In additio n to the matters disclosed under “Legal Proceedings,” the Company is being challenged in a number of countries regarding its application of value-added taxes (VAT) to certain of its international transactions, which are in various stages of audit, or are b eing contested in legal actions (collectively, VAT matters). While the Company believes it has complied with all applicable tax laws, rules and regulations in the relevant jurisdictions, the tax authorities may determine that the Company owes additional VA T. In certain jurisdictions where the Company is contesting the assessments, it was required to pay the VAT assessments prior to contesting. The Company’s legal proceedings range from cases brought by a single plaintiff to class actions with millions of p utative class members. These legal proceedings involve various lines of business of the Company and a variety of claims (including, but not limited to, common law tort, contract, application of tax laws, antitrust and consumer protection claims), some of w hich present novel factual allegations and/or unique legal theories. While some matters pending against the Company specify the damages claimed by the plaintiff or class, many seek an unspecified amount of damages or are at very early stages of the legal p rocess. 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 progressed sufficiently through discovery and/or development of important factu al information and legal issues to enable the Company to estimate an amount of loss or a range of possible loss, while other matters have progressed sufficiently such that the Company is able to estimate an amount of loss or a range of possible loss. The Company has recorded reserves for certain of its outstanding legal proceedings. A reserve is recorded when it is both (a) probable that a loss has occurred and (b) the amount of loss can be reasonably estimated. There may be instances in which an exposure to loss exceeds the recorded reserve. The Company evaluates, on a quarterly basis, developments in legal proceedings that could cause an increase or decrease in the amount of the reserve that has been previously recorded, or a revision to the disclosed est imated range of possible losses, as applicable. For those disclosed material legal proceedings and VAT matters where a loss is reasonably possible in future periods, whether in excess of a related reserve for legal or tax contingencies or where there is n o such reserve, and for which the Company is able to estimate a range of possible loss, the current estimated range is zero to $500 million in excess of any reserves related to those matters. This range represents management’s estimate based on currently available information and does not represent the Company’s maximum loss exposure; actual results may vary significantly. As such leg al proceedings evolve, the Company may need to increase its range of possible loss or reserves. Based on its current knowledge, and taking 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 legal proceeding that would have a material adverse effect on the Company’s consolidated financial condition or liquidity. However, in light of the uncertainties involved in such matters, it is possible that the outcome of le gal proceedings, including the possible resolution of merchant claims, could have a material impact on the Company’s results of operations. COMMITMENTS The Company leases certain facilities and equipment under non-cancelable and cancelable agreements, for which total rental expense was $151 million, $169 million and $187 million in 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively. As of December 31, 2017, the minimum aggregate rental commitment under all non-cancelable operating leases (net of subleases of $20 million) was as follows:
(Millions) |  |
2018 |  | $ | 131
2019 |  |  | 124
2020 |  |  | 98
2021 |  |  | 72
2022 |  |  | 57
Thereafter |  |  | 831
Total |  | $ | 1,313
As of December 31, 2017, the Company’s future minimum lease payments under capital leases or other similar arrangements is approximately $4 million per annum in 201 8 through 202 0, $2 million in 202 1, $1 million in 2022 and $10 million in aggregate thereafter. As of December 31, 2017, the Company had $5.6 billion in commitments related to agreements with certain cobrand partners under which it makes payments based primarily on the amount of Card Member spending and corresp onding rewards earned on such spending and, under certain arrangements, on the number of accounts acquired and retained.

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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 450 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/topic&trid=2127136 Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 440 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/topic&trid=2144648 + Details
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