Legal Proceedings

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2011

Legal Proceedings

Legal Proceedings

Note 11.           Legal Proceedings

ResCare, or its affiliates, are parties to various legal and/or administrative proceedings arising out of the operation of our programs and arising in the ordinary course of business. We do not believe the ultimate liability, if any, for these proceedings or claims, individually or in the aggregate, in excess of amounts already provided, will have a material adverse effect on our condensed consolidated financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

In March 2007, a lawsuit was filed in Bernalillo County, New Mexico State Court styled Larry Selk, by and through his legal guardian, Rani Rubio v. Res-Care New Mexico, Inc., Res-Care, Inc., et al. The lawsuit sought compensatory and punitive damages for negligence, negligence per se, violations of the Unfair Practices Act and violations of the Resident Abuse and Neglect Act. Settlement discussions were unsuccessful and a jury trial commenced on November 9, 2009 on the remaining issue of negligence. The jury returned a verdict of approximately $53.9 million in damages against the Company, consisting of approximately $4.7 million in compensatory damages and $49.2 million in punitive damages, which was entered as a judgment in December 2009. Ruling on various post trial motions, on February 19, 2010, the New Mexico trial court judge reduced the jury award to $15.5 million, consisting of approximately $10.8 million in punitive damages and $4.7 million in compensatory damages. We believe the parent company is not liable for the actions of its subsidiary or its employees and that both the compensatory and punitive amounts awarded are excessive and contradict various United States Supreme Court and New Mexico Supreme Court decisions which would warrant a new trial or, in the alternative, would limit the amount of damages awarded to a significantly lower amount. We, as well as the plaintiffs, have appealed and we will continue to defend this matter vigorously. Oral arguments before the Court of Appeals have been scheduled for November 15, 2011. Although we have made provisions in our condensed consolidated financial statements for this self-insured matter, the amount of our legal reserve is less than the amount of the damages awarded, plus accrued interest. If our appeal to obtain a new trial or reduce the amount of the damages does not succeed, it could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.