Commitments, Contingent Liabilities and Other Tax Matters

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2018

Commitments, Contingent Liabilities and Other Tax Matters

Commitments, Contingent Liabilities and Other Tax Matters

Note 10 — Commitments and Contingent Liabilities and Other Tax Matters

The Company is involved in various legal proceedings that are in various stages of litigation.  The Company has determined, based on discussions with its counsel, that any material loss in such actions, individually or in the aggregate, is remote or the damages sought, even if fully recovered, would not be considered material to the consolidated financial position or results of operations of the Company.  However, many of these matters are in various stages of proceedings and further developments could cause management to revise its assessment of these matters.

On December 22, 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“Tax Act”) was signed into law.  The Tax Act materially changes U. S. corporate income tax rates, among other things.  The Company was in a net deferred tax liability position at the time the Tax Act was enacted and subsequently revalued the carrying value of the net deferred liability and its components to the new 21% effective tax rate.  The revaluation resulted in a net benefit to the Company of $3,168,000 and was included as a reduction to income tax expense in the consolidated income statement for the year ended December 31, 2017.  No adjustments to the revalued carrying value for deferred tax assets or liabilities were made during the three or six months ended June 30, 2018.