OTHER COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

Property and Rental Agreements

In March 2014, we signed a lease for offices located in Purchase, New York. The lease is for 3,650 square feet of office space with a monthly cost of approximately $9,277 per month. We decided to consolidate operations in the Purchase, NY office with the facility in Clearwater. Based on this, we determined the office in Purchase, NY was no longer necessary and decided to cease all activity at the location. The remaining lease of approximately $175,000, has been expensed in 2017, included as part of severance and related expense and will be operational cash outflows during 2018 and 2019.

In October 2015, pursuant to our acquisition of Bovie Bulgaria, we are obligated to pay a lease of $5,424 per month, expiring in December 2021, for 18,745 square feet of office, research and manufacturing space in Sofia, Bulgaria.

The following is a schedule of approximate future minimum lease payments under operating leases as of December 31, 2017:



(In thousands)
2018	$	74
2019	74
2020	74
2021	74
Total	$	296

Litigation

The medical device industry is characterized by frequent claims and litigation, and we are and may become subject to various claims, lawsuits and proceedings in the ordinary course of our business, including claims by current or former employees, distributors and competitors, and with respect to our products and product liability claims, lawsuits and proceedings.

We are involved in a number of legal actions relating to the use of our J-Plasma technology. The outcomes of these legal actions are not within our complete control and may not be known for prolonged periods of time. In the opinion of management, the Company has meritorious defenses, and such claims are adequately covered by insurance, or are not expected, individually or in the aggregate, to result in a material, adverse effect on our financial condition. However, in the event that damages exceed the aggregate coverage limits of our policy or if our insurance carriers disclaim coverage, we believe it is possible that costs associated with these claims could have a material adverse impact on our consolidated earnings, financial position or cash flows.

Purchase Commitments

At December 31, 2017, we had purchase commitments for inventories totaling approximately $4.3 million, substantially all of which is expected to be purchased by the end of 2018.

Severance

Jack McCarthy, the Chief Commercialization Officer, was terminated without cause from his position with the Company effective November 6, 2017. Severance costs incurred included salary, option expense and other benefits of approximately $582,000, of which approximately $397,000 will be operational cash outflows during 2018.

Robert L. Gershon, the Chief Executive Officer and a director, resigned from all of his positions with the Company effective December 15, 2017. In connection with this departure, the Company and Mr. Gershon entered into a separation agreement, dated December 15, 2017. Severance costs incurred included salary, option expense and other benefits of approximately $767,000, of which approximately $670,000 will be operational cash outflows during 2018.