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Contingencies | 9 Months Ended
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Jun. 30, 2023
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract] |
Contingencies | G. Contingencies Respirator Liabilities Cabot has exposure in connection with a safety respiratory products business that a subsidiary acquired from American Optical Corporation (“AO”) in an April 1990 asset purchase transaction. The subsidiary manufactured respirators under the AO brand and disposed of that business in July 1995. In connection with its acquisition of the business, the subsidiary agreed, in certain circumstances, to assume a portion of AO’s liabilities, including costs of legal fees together with amounts paid in settlements and judgments, allocable to AO respiratory products used prior to the 1990 purchase by the Cabot subsidiary. In exchange for the subsidiary’s assumption of certain of AO’s respirator liabilities, AO agreed to provide to the subsidiary the benefits of: (i) AO’s insurance coverage for the period prior to the 1990 acquisition and (ii) a former owner’s indemnity of AO holding it harmless from any liability allocable to AO respiratory products used prior to May 1982. As more fully described in the 2022 10-K, the respirator liabilities generally involve claims for personal injury, including asbestosis, silicosis and coal worker’s pneumoconiosis, allegedly resulting from the use of respirators that are alleged to have been negligently designed and/or labeled. At no time did this respiratory product line represent a significant portion of the respirator market. In addition to Cabot’s subsidiary, other parties are responsible for significant portions of the costs of these respirator liabilities (as defined in the 2022 10-K, the “Payor Group”). On July 26, 2022, one of the members of the Payor Group, Aearo Technologies (“Aearo”), voluntarily filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection with the stated goal of establishing a trust, funded by Aearo and its parent 3M, to satisfy respirator and other unrelated claims determined to be entitled to compensation. On June 9, 2023, the court dismissed Aearo’s bankruptcy case based on motions filed by various creditors in the case. Aearo appealed the decision but did not seek to stay the dismissal, which made the dismissal effective immediately and ended the automatic bankruptcy stay. The Company will continue to monitor Aearo’s appeal; if Aearo's appeal is successful it could reinstate the bankruptcy case. Cabot has a reserve to cover its expected share of liabilities for pending and future respirator liability claims, which is included in Other liabilities and Accounts payable and accrued liabilities on the Consolidated Balance Sheets. The Company expects these liabilities to be incurred over a number of years. The reserve balance was $38 million and $39 million at June 30, 2023 and September 30, 2022, respectively. The Company’s current estimate of the cost of its share of pending and future respirator liability claims is based on facts and circumstances existing at this time, including the number and nature of the remaining claims. Developments that could affect the Company’s estimate include, but are not limited to, (i) significant changes in the number of future claims, (ii) changes in the rate of dismissals without payment of pending claims, (iii) significant changes in the average cost of resolving claims, including potential settlements of groups of claims, (iv) significant changes in the legal costs of defending these claims, (v) changes in the nature of claims received or changes in our assessment of the viability of these claims, (vi) trial and appellate outcomes, (vii) changes in the law and procedure applicable to these claims, (viii) the financial viability of the parties that contribute to the payment of respirator claims and future developments in the now-dismissed Aearo bankruptcy proceedings while Aearo’s appeal is ongoing, (ix) exhaustion or changes in the recoverability of the insurance coverage maintained by certain members of the Payor Group, or a change in the availability of the indemnity provided by a former owner of AO, (x) changes in the allocation of costs among the various parties paying legal and settlement costs, and (xi) a determination that the assumptions that were used to estimate Cabot’s share of liability are no longer reasonable. The Company cannot determine the impact of these potential developments on its current estimate of its share of liability for existing and future claims. Because reserves are limited to amounts that are probable and estimable as of a relevant measurement date, and there is inherent difficulty in projecting the impact of potential developments on Cabot’s share of liability for these existing and future claims, it is reasonably possible that the liabilities for existing and future claims could change in the near term and that change could be material. Value-added Tax (“VAT”) Matter As outlined in Note S, Commitments and Contingencies of the 2022 10-K, the Company had filed legal actions challenging VAT related assessments it had received from a non-U.S. taxing authority. At such time, the Company did not believe that it was probable that it would incur a loss related to these matters. However, as the interpretation and application of the VAT rules related to the assessment are an unsettled issue it was reasonably possible to incur a loss. The Company estimated it could incur a charge that ranged between a nil amount and $41 million. In June 2023, the Court of Justice of the European Union issued a judgement that is favorable to the Company’s position in these matters. As a result, the Company believes the possibility it will incur a loss related to these matters is remote. Other Matters The Company has various other lawsuits, claims and contingent liabilities arising in the ordinary course of its business and with respect to its divested businesses. The Company does not believe that any of these matters will have a material adverse effect on its financial position; however, litigation is inherently unpredictable. Cabot could incur judgments, enter into settlements or revise its expectations regarding the outcome of certain matters, and such developments could have a material impact on its results of operations in the period in which the amounts are accrued or its cash flows in the period in which the amounts are paid.

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