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Significant Accounting Policies
3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2015
Accounting Policies [Abstract]  
Significant Accounting Policies
FirstMerit Corporation and subsidiaries is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Akron, Ohio with 384 banking offices in the Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Pennsylvania areas. The Corporation provides a complete range of banking and other financial services to consumers and businesses through its core operations.
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Unless otherwise indicated, defined terms and abbreviations used herein have the meanings set forth in the accompanying Glossary of Acronyms and Abbreviations.

Basis of Presentation - FirstMerit Corporation is a BHC whose principal asset is the Common Stock of its wholly-owned subsidiary, FirstMerit Bank, N. A. The Parent Company’s other subsidiaries include Citizens Savings Corporation of Stark County, FirstMerit Capital Trust I, and FirstMerit Risk Management, Inc. All significant intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.

The accounting and reporting policies of the Corporation conform to GAAP and to general practices within the financial services industry.

The Consolidated Balance Sheet at December 31, 2014 has been derived from the audited consolidated financial statements at that date. The accompanying unaudited interim financial statements reflect all adjustments (consisting only of normally recurring adjustments) that are, in the opinion of Management, necessary for a fair statement of the results for the interim periods presented. Certain reclassifications of prior year’s amounts have been made to conform to the current year presentation. Such reclassifications had no effect on net earnings or equity. Certain information and note disclosures normally included in financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP have been omitted in accordance with the rules of the SEC. The unaudited consolidated financial statements of the Corporation as of March 31, 2015 and 2014 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be achieved for the full fiscal year or for any future period. These unaudited consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements and notes included in the Corporation’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014 (the “2014 Form 10-K”). There have been no significant changes in the current quarter to the Corporation’s accounting policies as disclosed in the 2014 Form 10-K.

In preparing these accompanying unaudited interim consolidated financial statements, subsequent events were evaluated through the time the consolidated financial statements were issued.

    
Recently Adopted Accounting Standards

FASB ASU 2014-14, Classification of Certain Government-Guaranteed Mortgage Loans upon Foreclosure—a consensus of the FASB Emerging Issues Task Force. The objective of this update is to reduce diversity in practice by addressing the classification of certain foreclosed mortgage loans held by creditors that are either fully or partially guaranteed under government programs. The amendments in this update require that a mortgage loan be derecognized and that a separate other receivable be recognized upon foreclosure if the
following conditions are met: 1) the loan has a government guarantee that is not separable from the
loan before foreclosure; 2) at the time of foreclosure, the creditor has the intent to convey the real
estate property to the guarantor and make a claim on the guarantee, and the creditor has the ability to recover under that claim; and 3) at the time of foreclosure, any amount of the claim that is determined on the basis of the fair value of the real estate is fixed. Upon foreclosure, the separate other receivable should be measured based on the amount of the loan balance (principal and interest) expected to be recovered from the guarantor. The ASU is effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2014. The amendments can be adopted using either a prospective transition method or a modified retrospective transition method. The adoption of this accounting guidance did not have a material effect on the Corporation’s financial position or results of operations.

FASB ASU 2014-11, Transfers and Servicing: Repurchase-to-Maturity Transactions, Repurchase Financings, and Disclosures. The amendments in this update require entities to account for repurchase-to-maturity transactions as secured borrowings (rather than as sales with forward repurchase agreements), eliminate accounting guidance on linking repurchase financing transactions, and expand disclosure requirements related to certain transfers of financial assets that are accounted for as sales and certain transfers, such as repos, securities lending transactions, and repurchase-to-maturity transactions, accounted for as secured borrowings. The amendments in ASU 2014-11 are effective for the first interim or annual period beginning after December 15, 2014. The amendments must present changes in accounting for transactions outstanding on the effective date as a cumulative-effect adjustment to retained earnings as of the beginning of the period of adoption. Early application is prohibited. The adoption of this accounting guidance did not have a material effect on the Corporation’s financial position or results of operations.

FASB ASU 2014-08, Presentation of Financial Statements and Property, Plant, and Equipment: Reporting Discontinued Operations and Disclosures of Disposals of Components of an Entity. The amendments in this update change the definition of a discontinued operation in ASC 205-20 and require additional disclosures for transactions that meet the definition of a discontinued operation and certain other significant transactions that do not meet the discontinued operations criteria. The amendments in ASU 2014-08 are effective prospectively for all disposals, except disposals classified as held for sale before the adoption date or components initially classified as held for sale in periods beginning on or after December 15, 2014, with early adoption permitted. The adoption of this accounting guidance did not have a material effect on the Corporation’s financial position or results of operations.

FASB ASU 2014-04, Reclassification of Residential Real Estate Collateralized Consumer Mortgage Loans upon Foreclosure. ASU 2014-04 amends the guidance in ASC 310-40 by clarifying when an in-substance repossession or foreclosure occurs, and a creditor is considered to have received physical possession of residential real estate property collateralizing a consumer mortgage loan. Additionally, the amendments require interim and annual disclosure of both 1) the amount of foreclosed residential real estate property held by the creditor and 2) the recorded investment in consumer mortgage loans collateralized by residential real estate property that are in the process of foreclosure according to local requirements of the applicable jurisdiction. The amendments in ASU 2014-04 are effective for annual periods, and interim period within those annual periods, beginning after December 15, 2014. The amendments can either be adopted using a modified retrospective or a prospective transition method. The adoption of this accounting guidance did not have a material effect on the Corporation’s financial position or results of operations.

Recently Issued Accounting Standards
    
FASB ASU 2015-5, Intangibles—Goodwill and Other—Internal-Use Software (Subtopic 350-40): Customer’s Accounting for Fees Paid in a Cloud Computing Arrangement. The amendments in ASU 2015-05 provide guidance to customers about whether a cloud computing arrangement includes a software license. If a cloud computing arrangement includes a software license, then the customer should account for the software license element of the arrangement consistent with the acquisition of other software licenses. If a cloud computing arrangement does not include a software license, the customer should account for the arrangement as a service contract. The guidance will not change GAAP for a customer’s accounting for service contracts. In addition, the guidance in this Update supersedes paragraph 350-40-25-16. Consequently, all software licenses within the scope of Subtopic 350-40 will be accounted for consistent with other licenses of intangible assets. The amendments are effective for public business entities for annual and interim periods within those annual periods, beginning after December 15, 2015. An entity can elect to adopt the amendments either (1) prospectively to all arrangements entered into or materially modified after the effective date or (2) retrospectively. For prospective transition, the only disclosure requirements at transition are the nature of and reason for the change in accounting principle, the transition method, and a qualitative description of the financial statement line items affected by the change. For retrospective transition, the disclosure requirements
at transition include the requirements for prospective transition and quantitative information about the effects of the accounting change. The Corporation is in process of assessing the potential impact the adoption of this guidance will have on its consolidated financial statements.
    
FASB ASU 2015-3, Interest - Imputation of Interest (Subtopic 835-30): Simplifying the Presentation of Debt Issuance Costs. The amendments in ASU 2015-03, require that debt issuance costs related to a recognized debt liability be presented in the balance sheet as a direct deduction from that debt liability, consistent with the presentation of a debt discount. An entity should apply the new guidance on a retrospective basis, wherein the balance sheet of each individual period presented should be adjusted to reflect the period-specific effects of applying the new guidance. The recognition and measurement guidance for debt issuance costs are not affected by the amendments in this ASU. For public business entities, the amendments in this Update are effective for financial statements issued for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2015, and interim periods within those fiscal years. An entity should apply the new guidance on a retrospective basis, wherein the balance sheet of each individual period presented should be adjusted to reflect the period-specific effects of applying the new guidance. Upon transition, an entity is required to comply with the applicable disclosures for a change in an accounting principle. The adoption of this guidance is not expected to have a material effect on the Corporations financial position or results of operations.

FASB ASU 2015-2, Amendments to the Consolidation Analysis. The amendments in ASU 2015-02 affect reporting entities that are required to evaluate whether they should consolidate certain legal entities. All legal entities are subject to reevaluation under the revised consolidation model. These amendments modify the evaluation of whether limited partnerships and other similar entities are variable interest entities; eliminate the presumption that a general partner should consolidate a limited partnership; affect the consolidation analysis that are involved with variable interest entities; and provide a scope exception from consolidation for entities that are required to comply or operate in accordance with requirements that are similar to those in Rule 2a-7 of the Investment Company Act of 1940 for registered money market funds. The amendments are effective for public business entities for fiscal years, and for interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2015. Early adoption is permitted, including adoption in an interim period. If an entity early adopts the amendments in an interim period, any adjustments should be reflected as of the beginning of the fiscal year that includes that interim period. A reporting entity may apply the amendments using a modified retrospective approach by recording a cumulative-effect adjustment to equity as of the beginning of the fiscal year of adoption. A reporting entity also may apply the amendments retrospectively. The adoption of this guidance is not expected to have a material effect on the Corporations financial position or results of operations.

FASB ASU 2014–12, Accounting for Share-Based Payments When the Terms of an Award Provide That a Performance Target Could Be Achieved After the Requisite Service Period — a consensus of the FASB Emerging Issues Task Force. The amendments in this update clarify that entities should treat performance targets that can be met after the requisite service period of a share-based payment award as performance conditions that affect vesting. Therefore, an entity would not record compensation expense (measured as of the grant date without taking into account the effect of the performance target) related to an award for which transfer to the employee is contingent on the entity’s satisfaction of a performance target until it becomes probable that the performance target will be met. The ASU does not contain any new disclosure requirements. The ASU is effective for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2015. Early adoption is permitted. In addition, entities will have the option of applying the guidance either prospectively (i.e., only to awards granted or modified on or after the effective date) or retrospectively. Retrospective application would only apply to awards with performance targets outstanding at or after the beginning of the first annual period presented (i.e., the earliest presented comparative period). The adoption of this guidance is not expected to have a material effect on the Corporations financial position or results of operations.

FASB ASU 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers. The amendments in this update supersede virtually all existing GAAP revenue recognition guidance, including most industry-specific revenue recognition guidance. ASU 2014-09 creates a single, principle-based revenue recognition framework and will require entities to apply significantly more judgment and expanded disclosures surrounding revenue recognition. The core principle requires an entity to recognize revenue in a manner that depicts the transfer of goods or services to customers at an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. ASU 2014-09 applies to contracts with customers to provide goods and services, with certain exclusions such as lease contracts, financing arrangements, and financial instruments. The amendments in ASU 2014-09 are effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2016. On April 1, 2015, the FASB proposed to defer the effective date by one year, permitting public organizations to apply this guidance to annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2017, with early adoption permitted, but not before the original public organization effective date. The amendments can be adopted using either the full retrospective approach or a modified retrospective approach. Early adoption is prohibited. The Corporation is in process of assessing the potential impact the adoption of this guidance will have on its consolidated financial statements.