Recent Accounting Pronouncements (Policies)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Consolidation of Variable Interest Entity

CBL conducts substantially all of its business through CBL & Associates Limited Partnership (the “Operating Partnership”), which is a variable interest entity ("VIE"). The Operating Partnership consolidates the financial statements of all entities in which it has a controlling financial interest or where it is the primary beneficiary of a VIE.

Basis of Presentation

The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements are unaudited; however, they have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) for interim financial information and in conjunction with the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). Accordingly, they do not include all of the disclosures required by GAAP for complete financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments (consisting solely of normal recurring matters) necessary for a fair presentation of the financial statements for these interim periods have been included. All intercompany transactions have been eliminated. The results for the interim period ended September 30, 2018 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be obtained for the full fiscal year.

These condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the Company’s audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

Accounting Guidance Adopted



Description	Date Adopted & Application Method	Financial Statement Effect and Other Information
ASU 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers, and related subsequent amendments	January 1, 2018 - Modified Retrospective (applied to contracts not completed as of the implementation date)	The objective of this guidance is to enable financial statement users to better understand and analyze revenue by replacing transaction and industry-specific guidance with a more principles-based approach to revenue recognition. The core principle is that an entity should recognize revenue to depict the transfer of goods or services to customers in an amount that the entity expects to be entitled to in exchange for those goods or services. The guidance also requires additional disclosure about the nature, timing and uncertainty of revenue and cash flows arising from customer contracts. The Company expects the adoption of the new guidance to be immaterial to its net income on an ongoing basis as the majority of the Company’s revenues relate to leasing. See Note 3 for further details and the cumulative adjustment recorded.

ASU 2016-16, Intra-Entity Transfers of Assets Other Than Inventory	January 1, 2018 - Modified Retrospective	The guidance requires an entity to recognize the income tax consequences of intercompany sales or transfers of assets, other than inventory, when the sale or transfer occurs. The Company recorded a cumulative effect adjustment of $11,433 to retained earnings as of January 1, 2018 related to certain 2017 asset sales from several of the Company's consolidated subsidiaries to the Management Company.

ASU 2017-05, Clarifying the Scope of Asset Derecognition Guidance and Accounting for Partial Sales of Nonfinancial Assets	January 1, 2018 - Modified Retrospective	This guidance applies to the partial sale or transfer of nonfinancial assets, including real estate assets, to unconsolidated joint ventures and requires 100% of the gain to be recognized for nonfinancial assets transferred to an unconsolidated joint venture and any noncontrolling interest received in such nonfinancial assets to be measured at fair value. See Note 3 for further details including the impact of adoption and the cumulative adjustment recorded.



Description	Date Adopted & Application Method	Financial Statement Effect and Other Information
ASU 2017-09, Scope of Modification Accounting	January 1, 2018 - Prospective	The guidance clarifies the types of changes to the terms or conditions of a share-based payment award to which an entity would be required to apply modification accounting. The guidance did not have a material impact on the Company's condensed consolidated financial statements.

Accounting Guidance Not Yet Effective



Description	Expected Adoption Date & Application Method	Financial Statement Effect and Other Information
ASU 2016-02, Leases, and related subsequent amendments	January 1, 2019 - Modified Retrospective (electing optional transition method to apply at adoption date and record cumulative-effect adjustment as of January 1, 2019)	The objective of the leasing guidance is to increase transparency and comparability by recognizing lease assets and liabilities on the balance sheet and disclosing key information about leasing arrangements. Lessees will be required to recognize a right-of-use asset and corresponding lease liability on the balance sheet for all leases with terms greater than 12 months. The guidance applied by a lessor is substantially similar to existing GAAP and the Company expects substantially all leases will continue to be classified as operating leases under the new guidance. The Company expects to expense certain deferred lease costs due to the narrowed definition of indirect costs that may be capitalized. Of the $1,456 in deferred lease costs recorded in 2017, approximately $183 related to legal costs which would not be capitalized under the new guidance. The Company completed an inventory of its leases in which it is a lessee and expects to record right-of-use assets and corresponding lease liabilities for ground leases. The Company has 10 ground lease arrangements in which it is the lessee for land. As of September 30, 2018, these ground leases have future contractual payments of approximately $14,767 with maturity dates ranging from February 2022 to July 2089. Practical expedients and accounting policy elections: The Company plans to elect a package of practical expedients pursuant to which it will not reassess contracts to determine if they contain leases, will not reassess lease classification and will not reassess capitalization of initial direct costs related to expired or existing leases as of the adoption date. The Company also plans to use the land easements practical expedient and apply the short-term lease policy election to leases 12 months or less at inception. The Company expects to adopt the practical expedient which allows lessors to combine lease and non-lease components if certain conditions are met. The majority of the Company's revenues will continue to be classified as leasing revenues. The Company is assessing the potential impact the guidance may have on its condensed consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.

ASU 2016-13, Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments	January 1, 2020 - Modified Retrospective	The guidance replaces the current incurred loss impairment model, which reflects credit events, with a current expected credit loss model, which recognizes an allowance for credit losses based on an entity's estimate of contractual cash flows not expected to be collected. The Company is evaluating the impact that this update may have on its condensed consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.



Description	Expected Adoption Date & Application Method	Financial Statement Effect and Other Information
ASU 2018-15, Customer's Accounting for Implementation Costs Incurred in a Cloud Computing Arrangement That Is a Service Contract	January 1, 2020 - Prospective	The guidance addresses diversity in practice in accounting for the costs of implementation activities in a cloud computing arrangement that is a service contract. Under the guidance, the Company is to follow Subtopic 350-40 on internal-use software to determine which implementation costs to capitalize and which to expense. The guidance also requires an entity to expense capitalized implementation costs over the term of the hosting arrangement and include that expense in the same line item as the fees associated with the service element of the arrangement. The Company does not expect the adoption of this guidance will have a material impact on its condensed consolidated financial statements or disclosures.

Fair Value Measurements

The Company has categorized its financial assets and financial liabilities that are recorded at fair value into a hierarchy in accordance with ASC 820, Fair Value Measurements and Disclosure, ("ASC 820") based on whether the inputs to valuation techniques are observable or unobservable. The fair value hierarchy contains three levels of inputs that may be used to measure fair value as follows:


Level 1 –	Inputs represent quoted prices in active markets for identical assets and liabilities as of the measurement date.


Level 2 –	Inputs, other than those included in Level 1, represent observable measurements for similar instruments in active markets, or identical or similar instruments in markets that are not active, and observable measurements or market data for instruments with substantially the full term of the asset or liability.


Level 3 –	Inputs represent unobservable measurements, supported by little, if any, market activity, and require considerable assumptions that are significant to the fair value of the asset or liability. Market valuations must often be determined using discounted cash flow methodologies, pricing models or similar techniques based on the Company’s assumptions and best judgment.

The asset or liability's fair value within the fair value hierarchy is based on the lowest level of any input that is significant to the fair value measurement. Under ASC 820, fair value measurements are determined based on the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability in an orderly transaction at the measurement date and under current market conditions. Valuation techniques used maximize the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs and consider assumptions such as inherent risk, transfer restrictions and risk of nonperformance.

Contingencies

The Company is currently involved in certain litigation that arises in the ordinary course of business, most of which is expected to be covered by liability insurance. Management makes assumptions and estimates concerning the likelihood and amount of any potential loss relating to these matters using the latest information available. The Company records a liability for litigation if an unfavorable outcome is probable and the amount of loss or range of loss can be reasonably estimated. If an unfavorable outcome is probable and a reasonable estimate of the loss is a range, the Company accrues the best estimate within the range. If no amount within the range is a better estimate than any other amount, the Company accrues the minimum amount within the range. If an unfavorable outcome is probable but the amount of the loss cannot be reasonably estimated, the Company discloses the nature of the litigation and indicates that an estimate of the loss or range of loss cannot be made. If an unfavorable outcome is reasonably possible and the estimated loss is material, the Company discloses the nature and estimate of the possible loss of the litigation.

Based on current expectations, such matters, both individually and in the aggregate, are not expected to have a material adverse effect on the liquidity, results of operations, business or financial condition of the Company.