NOTE 18—COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

Leases

The Company leases certain property consisting of retail and outlet stores, corporate offices, distribution centers and equipment. A majority of the Company’s leases expire at various dates through fiscal 2032. The Company has a lease for one gallery location that expires in fiscal 2058. The stores, distribution centers and corporate office leases generally provide that the Company assumes the maintenance and all or a portion of the property tax obligations on the leased property. Most store leases also provide for minimum annual rent payments, with provisions for additional rent based on a percentage of sales, after meeting certain sales thresholds, and for payment of certain expenses.

The aggregate future minimum rent payments under leases in effect as of January 30, 2016, are as follows (in thousands):

Lease agreements accounted for as:	Capital Leases ⁽¹⁾			Operating Leases		Build-to-Suit		Total
2016	$	1,147		$	78,586	$	17,523	$	97,256
2017		1,116			67,038		35,353		103,507
2018		1,132			58,518		38,200		97,850
2019		1,155			54,219		39,993		95,367
2020		1,194			48,684		40,525		90,403
Thereafter		10,374			334,880		631,528		976,782
Minimum lease commitments		16,118		$	641,925	$	803,122	$	1,461,165
Less—amount representing interest		(8,537	)
Present value of capital lease obligations		7,581
Less—current capital lease obligations		(182	)
Non-current capital lease obligations	$	7,399

(1)	The current and non-current capital lease obligations are included in other current liabilities and other non-current obligations, respectively, on the consolidated balance sheets.

Lease payments that depend on factors that are not measurable at the inception of the lease, such as future sales volume, represent contingent rent expense and are excluded from minimum lease payments and included in the determination of total rent expense when it is probable that the expense has been incurred and the amount is reasonably estimable. Future payments for insurance, real estate taxes and repair and maintenance to which the Company is obligated are excluded from minimum lease payments. Minimum and contingent rent under lease agreements accounted for as operating leases and lease agreements accounted for as build-to-suit lease transactions are as follows (in thousands):

	Year Ended
	January 30,		January 31,		February 1,
	2016		2015		2014
Lease agreements accounted for as operating leases
Minimum rent	$	76,246	$	75,654	$	66,686
Contingent rent		10,209		7,989		6,208
Total operating leases	$	86,455	$	83,643	$	72,894
Lease agreements accounted for as build-to-suit lease transactions⁽¹⁾
Minimum rent	$	12,755	$	7,375	$	1,980
Contingent rent		442		122		—
Total build-to-suit lease transactions	$	13,197	$	7,497	$	1,980

(1)

As described in Note 3—Significant Accounting Policies, the cash payments made under leases accounted for as build-to-suit lease transactions get allocated to land rent expense and as debt service payments (a portion to interest expense and a portion to financing obligation). Minimum rent payments recognized as interest expense within the consolidated statements of income were $9.9 million, $5.3 million and $1.1 million in fiscal 2015, fiscal 2014 and fiscal 2013, respectively. The remaining minimum rent in fiscal 2015, fiscal 2014 and fiscal 2013 are included in cost of goods sold on the consolidated statements of income. Contingent rent under build-to-suit lease transactions is recognized as interest expense within the consolidated statements of income.

In addition to the above, non-cash rent expense recognized within the consolidated statements of income was $2.9 million, $2.9 million and $3.9 million in fiscal 2015, fiscal 2014 and fiscal 2013, respectively, which represents the straight-line impact and amortization of tenant allowances under operating leases and land rent expense recorded for build-to-suit lease transactions prior to cash payments occurring under the leases.

Commitments

The Company had no material off balance sheet commitments as of January 30, 2016.

Contingencies

The Company is involved in lawsuits, claims and proceedings incident to the ordinary course of its business. These disputes are increasing in number as the business expands and the Company grows larger. Litigation is inherently unpredictable. As a result, the outcome of matters in which the Company is involved could result in unexpected expenses and liability that could adversely affect the Company’s operations. In addition, any claims against the Company, whether meritorious or not, could be time consuming, result in costly litigation, require significant amounts of management time and result in the diversion of significant operational resources.

The Company reviews the need for any loss contingency reserves and establishes reserves when, in the opinion of management, it is probable that a matter would result in liability, and the amount of loss, if any, can be reasonably estimated. Generally, in view of the inherent difficulty of predicting the outcome of those matters, particularly in cases in which claimants seek substantial or indeterminate damages, it is not possible to determine whether a liability has been incurred or to reasonably estimate the ultimate or minimum amount of that liability until the case is close to resolution, in which case no reserve is established until that time. As of January 30, 2016, the Company has recorded a liability for the estimated loss related to these disputes. There is a possibility that additional losses may be incurred in excess of the amounts that the Company has accrued. However, the Company believes that the ultimate resolution of these current matters will not have a material adverse effect on its consolidated financial statements.

Hernandez v. Restoration Hardware

On October 21, 2008, Mike Hernandez, individually and on behalf of others similarly situated, filed a class action in the Superior Court of the State of California for the County of San Diego against Restoration Hardware, Inc. alleging principally that the Company violated California’s Song-Beverly Credit Card Act of 1971 by requesting and recording ZIP codes from customers paying with credit cards. On May 23, 2014, in response to a directive from the Court, the parties filed a joint statement as to the parties’ agreed-upon claims process for the class members as well as to other matters related to this proceeding. On September 5, 2014, the Court granted plaintiffs’ motion for attorneys’ fees, costs, and awards, and awarded $9.5 million in fees and costs to plaintiffs’ attorneys. The Court entered judgment on September 29, 2014 and, on November 21, 2014, a class member filed a notice of appeal from the judgment. As a result of the appeal, the judgment was stayed until January 10, 2015. The appeal remains pending but the judgment is enforceable. As a result of these developments, during fiscal 2014, the Company recorded a $9.5 million charge related to this matter that was subsequently decreased to approximately $8 million. The decrease of approximately $1.5 million was based on a revision of estimated class member response. On March 16, 2015, the Company, through the third party claims administrator, began mailing the class action award to class members. The Company, through the third party claims administrator, paid approximately $2.4 million in cash awards to the class members and mailed 33% discount coupons, good for one year, on purchases up to $10,000, to class members that did not request the cash award. During a hearing on April 16, 2015, the Court provided additional guidance regarding the manner in which class members can use the 33% merchandise discount coupon. Specifically, the court ordered that the 33% coupons may be combined with the Company’s other promotional offers.