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Litigation and Regulatory Contingencies
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2024
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Litigation and Regulatory Contingencies

NOTE 21. Litigation and Regulatory Contingencies:

The Company and its subsidiaries are parties to lawsuits and are also involved in ongoing routine legal and regulatory proceedings related to their operations. These lawsuits and proceedings frequently are similar in nature to other lawsuits and proceedings pending against the Company’s competitors. When the Company has determined that a loss is both probable and reasonably estimable, a liability representing the best estimate of the Company’s financial exposure based on known facts has been recorded. Actual losses may materially differ from the amounts recorded.

With respect to the Company’s outstanding ordinary course lawsuits and proceedings, other than the Sjobring matter discussed below, the Company has determined either that a loss is not reasonably possible or that the estimated loss or range of loss, if any, is not expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

The Company’s ordinary course lawsuits include class actions or purported class action lawsuits, which challenge practices in the Company’s home warranty and title insurance and settlement services businesses. On February 25, 2005, a lawsuit styled, Sjobring vs. First American Title Insurance Company, et al., was filed and is pending in the Superior Court of the State of California, County of Los Angeles. Plaintiff asserts on behalf of a class that he was charged more than the Company’s filed rates for a lender’s title policy when issued in conjunction with a certain type of owner’s title policy. A class has been certified and the case is currently set for a jury trial on February 24, 2025. The complex factual issues of the case and the unpredictable nature of jury trials make it difficult for the Company to estimate the amount of damages which the plaintiff might successfully prove, and therefore the Company has not yet been able to assess the probability of loss or estimate the possible loss or the range of loss.

Most of the Company’s businesses are regulated by various federal, state and local governmental agencies. Many of the Company’s other businesses operate within statutory guidelines. Consequently, the Company may from time to time be subject to examination or investigation by such governmental agencies. Currently, governmental agencies are examining or investigating certain of the Company’s operations.

The Company does not believe that any pending examinations or investigations will have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. Some of these exams or investigations could, however, result in changes to the Company’s business practices which could ultimately have a material adverse impact on the Company’s financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.