Legal Matters

6 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2020

Note 14—Legal Matters

The Company is party to various legal and regulatory proceedings. Some of these proceedings involve complex claims that are subject to substantial uncertainties and unascertainable damages. Accordingly, except as disclosed, the Company has not established reserves or ranges of possible loss related to these proceedings, as at this time in the proceedings, the matters do not relate to a probable loss and/or the amount or range of losses are not reasonably estimable. Although the Company believes that it has strong defenses for the litigation and regulatory proceedings described below, it could, in the future, incur judgments or fines or enter into settlements of claims that could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or cash flows. From time to time, the Company may engage in settlement discussions or mediations with respect to one or more of its outstanding litigation matters, either on its own behalf or collectively with other parties.

The litigation accrual is an estimate and is based on management’s understanding of its litigation profile, the specifics of each case, advice of counsel to the extent appropriate and management’s best estimate of incurred loss as of the balance sheet date.

The following table summarizes the activity related to accrued litigation:



	Six Months Ended March 31,
	2020			2019
	(in millions)
Balance at beginning of period	$	1,203		$	1,434
Provision for uncovered legal matters	7			35
Provision for covered legal matters	7			159
Reestablishment of prior accrual related to interchange multidistrict litigation	467			—
Payments for legal matters	(416		)	(714		)
Balance at end of period	$	1,268		$	914

Accrual Summary—U.S. Covered Litigation

Visa Inc., Visa U.S.A. and Visa International are parties to certain legal proceedings that are covered by the U.S. retrospective responsibility plan, which the Company refers to as the U.S. covered litigation. See further discussion below under U.S. Covered Litigation and Note 5—U.S. and Europe Retrospective Responsibility Plans. An accrual for the U.S. covered litigation and a charge to the litigation provision are recorded when a loss is deemed to be probable and reasonably estimable. In making this determination, the Company evaluates available information, including but not limited to actions taken by the litigation committee. The total accrual related to the U.S. covered litigation could be either higher or lower than the escrow account balance.

The following table summarizes the accrual activity related to U.S. covered litigation:



	Six Months Ended March 31,
	2020			2019
	(in millions)
Balance at beginning of period	$	1,198		$	1,428
Reestablishment of prior accrual related to interchange multidistrict litigation	467			—
Payments for U.S. covered litigation	(414		)	(600		)
Balance at end of period	$	1,251		$	828

In fiscal 2019, the Company paid $600 million from its litigation escrow account into a settlement fund established pursuant to the Amended Settlement Agreement with the Damages Class plaintiffs in the Interchange Multidistrict Litigation. Under the Amended Settlement Agreement, if class members opt out of the Damages Class, the defendants are entitled to receive takedown payments of up to $700 million (up to $467 million for Visa), based on the percentage of payment card sales volume attributable to merchants who have chosen to opt out. On December 13, 2019, the district court entered a final judgment order approving the Amended Settlement Agreement with the Damages Class plaintiffs. A takedown payment of approximately $467 million was received on December 27, 2019, and deposited into the Company’s litigation escrow account. The deposit into the litigation escrow account and reestablishment of a prior accrual to address opt-out claims was recorded during the six months ended March 31, 2020. See further discussion below under U.S. Covered Litigation.

Accrual Summary—VE Territory Covered Litigation

Visa Inc., Visa International and Visa Europe are parties to certain legal proceedings that are covered by the Europe retrospective responsibility plan. Unlike the U.S. retrospective responsibility plan, the Europe retrospective responsibility plan does not have an escrow account that is used to fund settlements or judgments. The Company is entitled to recover VE territory covered losses through periodic adjustments to the conversion rates applicable to the UK&I preferred stock and Europe preferred stock. An accrual for the VE territory covered losses and a reduction to stockholders’ equity will be recorded when the loss is deemed to be probable and reasonably estimable. See further discussion below under VE Territory Covered Litigation and Note 5—U.S. and Europe Retrospective Responsibility Plans.

The following table summarizes the accrual activity related to VE territory covered litigation:



	Six Months Ended March 31,
	2020			2019
	(in millions)
Balance at beginning of period	$	5		$	—
Provision for VE territory covered litigation	7			159
Payments for VE territory covered litigation	(1		)	(98		)
Balance at end of period	$	11		$	61

U.S. Covered Litigation

Interchange Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) – Putative Class Actions

On November 20, 2019, the district court denied the bank defendants’ motion to dismiss the claims brought against them by the putative Injunctive Relief Class.

On December 13, 2019, the district court granted final approval of the 2018 Amended Settlement Agreement relating to claims by the Damages Class, which was subsequently appealed.

Interchange Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) - Individual Merchant Actions

Visa has reached settlements with a number of merchants representing approximately 30% of the Visa-branded payment card sales volume of merchants who opted out of the Amended Settlement Agreement with the Damages Class plaintiffs.

VE Territory Covered Litigation

Europe Merchant Litigation

Since July 2013, in excess of 500 Merchants (the capitalized term “Merchant,” when used in this section, means a merchant together with subsidiary/affiliate companies that are party to the same claim) have commenced proceedings against Visa Europe, Visa Inc. and other Visa subsidiaries in the UK, Germany, Belgium and Poland primarily relating to interchange rates in Europe and in some cases relating to fees charged by Visa and certain Visa rules. As of the filing date, Visa Europe, Visa Inc. and other Visa subsidiaries have settled the claims asserted by over 100 Merchants, leaving more than 400 Merchants with outstanding claims. In addition, over 30 additional Merchants have threatened to commence similar proceedings. Standstill agreements have been entered into with respect to some of those threatened Merchant claims, several of which have been settled.

Other Litigation

Canadian Merchant Litigation

Between August 2019 and January 2020, the Courts of Appeal in British Columbia, Quebec, Ontario and Saskatchewan rejected the appeals filed by Wal-Mart Canada and Home Depot of Canada Inc. In January 2020, Wal-Mart Canada and Home Depot of Canada Inc. filed applications to appeal the decisions of the British Columbia, Quebec and Ontario courts to the Supreme Court of Canada and those applications were denied on March 26, 2020. Wal-Mart Canada and Home Depot of Canada Inc. also filed an application seeking the Supreme Court’s review of the Saskatchewan court's decision. The application and an appeal to the Alberta Court of Appeal remain pending.

Nuts for Candy

On December 31, 2019, plaintiff filed a motion to dismiss and for attorneys’ fees and costs based on the settlement reached between the parties and the grant of final approval of the 2018 Amended Settlement Agreement as discussed above in Interchange Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) - Putative Class Actions.

On February 25, 2020, the court granted plaintiff’s motion to dismiss and for attorneys’ fees and costs. The case has been dismissed with prejudice.

Euronet Litigation

On December 13, 2019, Euronet 360 Finance Limited, Euronet Polska Spolka z.o.o. and Euronet Services spol. s.r.o. (“Euronet”) served a claim in the UK alleging that certain rules affecting ATM access fees in Poland, the Czech Republic and Greece by Visa Inc. and Mastercard Incorporated, and certain of their subsidiaries, breach various competition laws. Euronet seeks damages, costs, and injunctive relief to prevent the defendants from enforcing the aforementioned rules.