Contingencies and Guarantees

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2011

Contingencies and Guarantees [Abstract]

Contingencies and Guarantees

13. Contingencies and Guarantees

          Litigation

          In the normal course of business, the Corporation and its subsidiaries are at all times subject to pending and threatened legal actions, some for which the relief or damages sought are substantial. Although the Corporation is not able to predict the outcome of such actions, after reviewing pending and threatened actions with counsel, Management believes that based on the information currently available the outcome of such actions, individually or in the aggregate, will not have a material adverse effect on the results of operations or shareholders’ equity of the Corporation. However, it is possible that the ultimate resolution of these matters, if unfavorable, may be material to the results of operations in a particular future period as the time and amount of any resolution of such actions and its relationship to the future results of operations are not known.

          Reserves are established for legal claims only when losses associated with the claims are judged to be probable, and the loss can be reasonably estimated. In many lawsuits and arbitrations, including almost all of the class action lawsuits, it is not possible to determine whether a liability has been incurred or to estimate the ultimate or minimum amount of that liability until the case is close to resolution, in which case a reserve will not be recognized until that time.

Overdraft Litigation

          Commencing in December 2010, two separate lawsuits were filed in the Summit County Court of Common Pleas and the Lake County Court of Common Plea against the Corporation and the Bank. The complaints were brought as putative class actions on behalf of Ohio residents who maintained a checking account at the Bank and who incurred one or more overdraft fees as a result of the alleged re-sequencing of debit transactions. The lawsuit that had been filed in Summit County Court of Common Pleas was dismissed without prejudice on July 11, 2011. The remaining suit in Lake County seeks actual damages, disgorgement of overdraft fees, punitive damages, interest, injunctive relief and attorney fees.

365/360 Interest Litigation

          In August 2008 a lawsuit was filed in the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas against the Bank. The breach of contract complaint was brought as a putative class action on behalf of Ohio commercial borrowers who had allegedly had the interest they owed calculated improperly by using the 365/360 method. The complaint seeks actual damages, interest, injunctive relief and attorney fees.

Schneider Litigation

          Commencing in May 2006, two lawsuits were filed in the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas against the Bank. One complaint was filed by the receiver for the Bank customers Alan and Joanne Schneider, and the other complaint was filed by alleged defrauded investors of the Schneiders seeking to represent a class of persons who invested in promissory notes offered by the Schneiders. The allegations against the Bank arise out of Alan Schneider’s business checking account at the Bank into which investors’ checks were deposited and from which certain investors received payments. The complaints seek, among other things, actual damages, treble damages, punitive damages, interest, rescission and attorney fees. On January 14, 2011, a third-party complaint was filed by the Bank against its insurers in the receiver’s lawsuit. By opinion dated February 10, 2011 the Cuyahoga County Court of Appeals reversed the trial court’s decision certifying an investor class in the case brought by the alleged defrauded investors.

          On July 20, 2011 the Bank entered into a settlement agreement in the lawsuit with the receiver for Alan and Joanne Schneider that provides if certain conditions are satisfied the Bank’s insurer will make a settlement payment of approximately $9.9 million and the Bank will make a settlement payment of approximately $0.6 million. These payments will be used to pay the receiver’s legal fees and expenses and the balance distributed to the allegedly defrauded investors by the receiver in accordance with the settlement agreement. The Court will conduct a hearing on whether to approve the proposed settlement on August 15, 2011.

          Based on information currently available, consultation with counsel, available insurance coverage and established reserves, Management believes that the eventual outcome of all claims against the Corporation and its subsidiaries will not, individually or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on its consolidated financial position or results of operations. However, it is possible that the ultimate resolution of these matters, if unfavorable, may be material to the results of operations for a particular period. Other than the $0.6 million that has been reserved for the settlement in the Schneider Litigation, the Corporation has not established any reserves with respect to any of this disclosed litigation because it is not possible to determine either (i) whether a liability has been incurred or (ii) to estimate the ultimate or minimum amount of that liability or both at this time.

          Commitments to Extend Credit

          Commitments to extend credit are agreements to lend to a customer provided there is no violation of any condition established in the contract. Loan commitments to originate residential mortgage loans held for sale and forward commitments to sell residential mortgage loans are considered derivative instruments, and the fair value of these commitments is recorded on the consolidated balance. Additional information is provided in Note 9 (Derivatives and Hedging Activities). Commitments generally are extended at the then prevailing interest rates, have fixed expiration dates or other termination clauses and may require payment of a fee. Since many of the commitments are expected to expire without being drawn upon the total commitment amounts do not necessarily represent future cash requirements. Loan commitments involve credit risk not reflected on the balance sheet. The Corporation mitigates exposure to credit risk with internal controls that guide how applications for credit are reviewed and approved, how credit limits are established and, when necessary, how demands for collateral are made. Collateral held varies but may include accounts receivable, inventory, property, plant and equipment, and income-producing commercial properties. Management evaluates the creditworthiness of each prospective borrower on a case-by-case basis and, when appropriate, adjusts the allowance for probable credit losses inherent in all commitments. The allowance for unfunded lending commitments at June 30, 2011 was $5.8 million. Additional information pertaining to this allowance is included under the heading “Allowance for Loan Losses and Reserve for Unfunded Lending Commitments” within Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operation of this report.

          The following table shows the remaining contractual amount of each class of commitments to extend credit as of June 30, 2011. This amount represents the Corporation’s maximum exposure to loss if the customer were to draw upon the full amount of the commitment and subsequently default on payment for the total amount of the then outstanding loan.

	June 30, 2011
Loan Commitments
Commercial	$	2,367,898
Consumer		1,610,194
Total loan commitments	$	3,978,092

          Guarantees

          The Corporation is a guarantor in certain agreements with third parties. The following table shows the types of guarantees the Corporation had outstanding as of June 30, 2011.

	June 30, 2011
Financial guarantees
Standby letters of credit	$	109,621
Loans sold with recourse		41,576
Total financial guarantees	$	151,197

          Standby letters of credit obligate the Corporation to pay a specified third party when a customer fails to repay an outstanding loan or debt instrument, or fails to perform some contractual nonfinancial obligation. The credit risk involved in issuing letters of credit is essentially the same as involved in extending loan facilities to customers. Collateral held varies, but may include marketable securities, equipment and real estate. Any amounts drawn under standby letters of credit are treated as loans; they bear interest and pose the same credit risk to the Corporation as a loan. Except for short-term guarantees of $77.3 million at June 30, 2011, the remaining guarantees extend in varying amounts through 2015.

          In recourse arrangements, the Corporation accepts 100% recourse. By accepting 100% recourse, the Corporation is assuming the entire risk of loss due to borrower default. The Corporation uses the same credit policies originating loans which will be sold with recourse as it does for any other type of loan. The Corporation’s exposure to credit loss, if the borrower completely failed to perform and if the collateral or other forms of credit enhancement all prove to be of no value, is represented by the notional amount less any allowance for possible loan losses. The allowance for loan loss associated with loans sold with recourse was $2.1 million as of June 30, 2011.