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Commitments and Contingencies
6 Months Ended
Jul. 29, 2022
Commitments And Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Commitments and Contingencies

NOTE 11. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

 

Legal Proceedings

 

The Company is party to various claims, legal proceedings and investigations arising in the ordinary course of business. Some of these actions involve complex factual and legal issues and are subject to uncertainties. At this time, the Company is not able to either predict the outcome of these legal proceedings or reasonably estimate a potential range of loss with respect to the proceedings. While it is not feasible to predict the outcome of such pending claims, proceedings and investigations with certainty, management is of the opinion that their ultimate resolution should not have a material adverse effect on results of operations, cash flows or financial position taken as a whole.

 

As disclosed in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended January 28, 2022, the Company is the defendant in three separate lawsuits, each of which allege adverse health events and personal property damage as a result of wearing uniforms manufactured by Lands’ End: (1) Gilbert et al. v. Lands’ End, Inc., United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin, Civil Action No. 3:19-cv-00823-JDP, complaint filed October 3, 2019; (2) Andrews et al. v. Lands’ End, Inc., United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin, Civil Action No. 3:19-cv-01066-JDP, complaint filed on December 31, 2019, on behalf of 521 named plaintiffs, later amended to include 1,089 named plaintiffs; and (3) Davis et al. v. Lands’ End, Inc. and Lands’ End Business Outfitters, Inc., United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin, Case No. 3:20-cv-00195, complaint filed on March 4, 2020. Plaintiffs in Gilbert, Andrews, and Davis seek nationwide class certification on behalf of similarly situated Delta employees.  

 

By order dated April 20, 2020, the Court consolidated the Gilbert and Andrews cases (the “Consolidated Wisconsin Action”) and stayed the Davis case.  

 

Plaintiffs in the Consolidated Wisconsin Action and Davis each assert that the damages sustained by the members of the proposed class exceed $5,000,000. Plaintiffs in each case seek damages for personal injuries, pain and suffering, severe emotional distress, financial or economic loss, including medical services and expenses, lost income and other compensable injuries. Plaintiffs in the Consolidated Wisconsin Action seek class certification with respect to performance of the uniforms and warranty claims and maintain individual claims for personal injury by numerous named plaintiffs.  

 

On August 18, 2021, the Court ruled on several pending motions in the Consolidated Wisconsin Action. The Court denied Plaintiffs’ motion for class certification with respect to performance of the uniforms and warranty claims. The Court denied Plaintiffs’ motion for partial summary judgment regarding crocking claims and granted Lands’ End’s motion for partial summary judgment related to certain warranty claims. In addition, giving effect to both the addition and voluntary dismissal of individual plaintiffs over the course of the litigation, the number of individual plaintiffs had been reduced from 1,089 to 603 as of August 18, 2021. On September 1, 2021, Plaintiffs filed a Rule 23(f) petition, seeking interlocutory review of the Court’s decision denying class certification. On September 22, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit denied plaintiffs’ petition.

 

On July 8, 2022, the Court issued an Opinion and Order (the “July 8 Opinion”), ruling in the Company’s favor on several additional pending motions. The Court granted the Company’s motion to exclude Plaintiffs’ expert opinions because the opinions were not based on reliably applied and scientifically valid methods. Accordingly, because Plaintiffs failed to submit evidence

sufficient to show that the uniforms were defective or that a defect in the uniforms caused Plaintiffs’ alleged health problems, the Court granted the Company’s motion for summary judgement on Plaintiffs’ personal injury claims.

 

After giving effect to the July 8 Opinion, the remaining claims under the Consolidated Wisconsin Action relate to claims for property damage and breach of warranty. Lands’ End continues to vigorously defend these lawsuits and believes they are without merit.