XML 29 R14.htm IDEA: XBRL DOCUMENT v2.3.0.15
Commitments and Contingencies
3 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2011
Notes to Financial Statements [Abstract] 
Commitments and Contingencies
Commitments and Contingencies

Litigation

We are subject to various legal proceedings and claims arising out of our business which cover a wide range of matters such as antitrust, trade and other governmental regulations, product liability, patent and trademark matters, income taxes and other actions.

As previously disclosed, the Company is and has been subject to a variety of investigations into potential competition law violations in Europe. These matters involve a number of other consumer products companies and/or retail customers. The Company’s policy is to comply with all laws and regulations, including all antitrust and competition laws, and to cooperate with investigations by relevant regulatory authorities, which the Company is doing. Competition and antitrust law inquiries often continue for several years and, if violations are found, can result in substantial fines.

In response to the actions of the regulatory authorities, the Company launched its own internal investigations into potential violations of competition laws. The Company has identified violations in certain European countries and appropriate actions were taken.

Several regulatory authorities in Europe have issued separate complaints pursuant to their investigations alleging that the Company, along with several other companies, engaged in violations of competition laws in those countries. The remaining authorities' investigations are in various stages of the regulatory process. As a result of our initial and on-going analyses of the complaints, as well as final decisions issued by authorities in a number of countries, the Company has accrued liabilities for competition law violations totaling $283 million as of September 30, 2011. While the ultimate resolution of the matters for which we have accrued liabilities may result in fines or costs in excess of the amounts reserved, we do not expect any such incremental losses to materially impact our financial statements in the period in which they are accrued and paid, respectively. For our other remaining competition law matters, at this time, there are none that we consider reasonably possible to result in fines that are probable and estimable and we cannot reasonably estimate any additional fines to which the Company may be subject. We will continue to monitor developments for all of these investigations and will record additional charges as appropriate.

With respect to other litigation and claims, while considerable uncertainty exists, in the opinion of management and our counsel, the ultimate resolution of the various lawsuits and claims will not materially affect our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

We are also subject to contingencies pursuant to environmental laws and regulations that in the future may require us to take action to correct the effects on the environment of prior manufacturing and waste disposal practices. Based on currently available information, we do not believe the ultimate resolution of environmental remediation will have a material adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

Income Tax Uncertainties
The Company is present in over 150 taxable jurisdictions and, at any point in time, has 50 – 60 audits underway at various stages of completion. We evaluate our tax positions and establish liabilities for uncertain tax positions that may be challenged by local authorities and may not be fully sustained, despite our belief that the underlying tax positions are fully supportable. Uncertain tax positions are reviewed on an ongoing basis and are adjusted in light of changing facts and circumstances, including progress of tax audits, developments in case law and closing of statute of limitations. Such adjustments are reflected in the tax provision as appropriate. We have tax years open ranging from 2002 and forward. We are generally not able to reliably estimate the ultimate settlement amounts or timing until the close of the audit. While we do not expect material changes, it is possible that the amount of unrecognized benefit with respect to our uncertain tax positions will significantly increase or decrease within the next 12 months related to audits described above. At this time, we are not able to make a reasonable estimate of the range of impact on the balance of uncertain tax positions or the impact on the effective tax rate related to these items.

Additional information on the Commitments and Contingencies of the Company can be found in Note 10, Commitments and Contingencies, which appears in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2011.