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Commitments and Contingencies
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2018
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Commitments and Contingencies
Commitments and Contingencies

Contingencies-
In May 2013, twelve putative class action complaints were filed in the Delaware Court of Chancery against the Company and its board of directors challenging a proposed merger between the Company and an affiliate of Goldman Sachs & Co.  On June 10, 2013, the Court entered an Order of Consolidation and Appointment of Lead Plaintiffs and a Leadership Structure consolidating the twelve actions and appointing lead plaintiffs (“Plaintiffs”) and lead counsel in the litigation, captioned In re Ebix, Inc. Stockholder Litigation, Consol. C.A. No. 8526-VCS (the “Litigation”). On June 19, 2013, the Company announced that the merger agreement had been terminated.  Thereafter, on August 27, 2013, Plaintiffs filed a Verified Amended and Supplemented Class Action and Derivative Complaint (the “First Amended Complaint”), which defendants moved to dismiss on September 26, 2013. On July 24, 2014, the Court issued a Memorandum Opinion granting in part and denying in part the motions to dismiss the First Amended Complaint and subsequently entered an implementing order on September 15, 2014.  On January 16, 2015, Plaintiffs filed a Verified Second Amended and Supplemented Class Action and Derivative Complaint (the “Second Amended Complaint”).  On February 10, 2015, defendants filed a Motion to Dismiss the Second Amended Complaint, which was granted in part and denied in part in a Memorandum Opinion and Order issued on January 15, 2016.  On October 26, 2016, Plaintiffs filed a Verified Third Amended and Supplemented Class Action and Derivative Complaint (the “Third Amended Complaint”), which, among other things, added certain directors of the Company as defendants.  On January 5, 2018, Plaintiffs filed a motion for leave to join an additional plaintiff as co-lead plaintiff in this action (collectively, “Plaintiffs,” and together with all defendants, the “Parties”), which was granted on April 2, 2018.

On January 19, 2018, Plaintiffs filed a Fourth Amended and Supplemented Class Action and Derivative Complaint (the “Fourth Amended Complaint”), which asserted claims against the defendants, including: breach of fiduciary duty claims for improperly maintaining an acquisition bonus agreement between the Company and its Chief Executive Officer, dated July 15, 2009 (the “ABA”) (Count I); disclosure claims relating to the 2010 Proxy Statement and the Company’s 2010 Stock Incentive Plan (the “2010 Plan”) (Count II); a derivative claim for breach of fiduciary duty based on awards made pursuant to 2010 Plan (Count III); a breach of fiduciary duty claim for implementing purported additional entrenchment measures (Count IV); a claim seeking to declare the invalidity of certain bylaws adopted by the Company in 2014 (Count V); a claim seeking to declare the invalidity of the ABA (Count VI); a breach of fiduciary duty claim related to public disclosures about the ABA (Count VII); a claim seeking to declare the invalidity of the 2008 stockholder meeting, a 2008 Certificate amendment (the “Certificate Amendment”) and a 2008 stock split (the “Stock Dividend”), among other corporate acts, including the Company’s ratification of these 2008 corporate acts (Count VIII); a claim seeking to declare the invalidity of the CEO Bonus Plan (Count IX); and a claim for breach of fiduciary duty for deliberately inserting additional terms when calculating a potential bonus under the ABA (Count X).  The Fourth Amended Complaint sought declaratory relief, compensatory damages, interest, and attorneys’ fees and costs, among other things.  On March 7, 2018, defendants filed motions for summary judgment on all counts in the Fourth Amended Complaint. In connection with the Litigation, the Company’s Chief Executive Officer asserted a cross-claim for reformation of the ABA.

The terms of the ABA generally provided that if Mr. Raina was employed by the Company upon the occurrence of: (i) an event in which more than 50% of the voting stock of the Company was sold, transferred, or exchanged, (ii) a merger or consolidation of the Company, (iii) the sale, exchange, or transfer of all or substantially all of the Company’s assets, or (iv) the acquisition or dissolution of the Company (each, an “Acquisition Event”), the Company would pay Mr. Raina a cash bonus based on a formula that was disputed by Plaintiffs in the Litigation and a tax gross-up payment for excise taxes that would be imposed on Mr. Raina for the cash bonus payment. Upon the execution of a Stock Appreciation Right Award Agreement between the Company and its Chief Executive Officer, dated April 10, 2018 (the “April SAR Agreement”), the ABA was terminated and each party relinquished their respective rights and benefits under the ABA.

Upon the effective date of the April SAR Agreement, Mr. Raina received 5,953,975 stock appreciation rights with respect to the Company’s common shares (the “SARs”). Upon an Acquisition Event, each of the SARs entitle Mr. Raina to receive a cash payment from the Company equal to the excess, if any, of the net proceeds per share received in connection with the Acquisition Event over the base price of $7.95 per share. Although the SARs were not granted under the 2010 Plan, the April SAR Agreement incorporates certain provisions of the 2010 Plan, including the provisions requiring equitable adjustment of the number of SARs and the base price in connection with certain corporate events (including stock splits). Under the terms of the April SAR Agreement, Mr. Raina is entitled to receive full payment with respect to the SARs if either (i) he is employed by the Company on the closing date of an Acquisition Event or (ii) has been involuntarily terminated by the Company without cause (as defined in the April SAR Agreement) within the 180-day period immediately preceding an Acquisition Event. All of the SARs are forfeited if Mr. Raina’s employment is terminated for any other reason prior to the closing date of an Acquisition Event.

In addition, while Mr. Raina is employed by the Company and prior to an Acquisition Event, the April SAR Agreement provides that the Company’s Board of Directors (the “Board”) will determine annually whether a “shortfall” (as described below) exists as of the end of the immediately preceding fiscal year. In the event the Board determines that a shortfall exists, Mr. Raina will be granted additional SARs (or, in the Board’s sole discretion, additional restricted shares or restricted stock units (each a “Share Grant”)) in an amount sufficient to eliminate such shortfall (each a “Shortfall Grant”). Under the terms of the April SAR Agreement, a shortfall exists if: (A) the sum of (i) the number of common shares deemed to be owned by Mr. Raina as of the effective date of the April SAR Agreement, plus (ii) the number of SARs granted to Mr. Raina (including any Shortfall Grants), plus (iii) the number of shares underlying any previously granted Share Grant, was less than 20% of (B) the sum of (i) the number of SARs granted to Mr. Raina (including any Shortfall Grants), plus (ii) the number of outstanding shares reported by the Company in its audited financial statements as of the end of the immediately preceding fiscal year. Under the terms of the April SAR Agreement, if the Board elects to make a Shortfall Grant in respect of such shortfall, such SARs will be subject to the same terms and conditions as the SARs initially granted under the April SAR Agreement. If the Board elects to make a Share Grant in respect of such shortfall, such restricted shares or restricted stock units will have such terms and conditions as determined by the Board, but generally will follow the terms of the restricted shares or restricted stock units granted to other executives of the Company at or about the time of such Share Grant, but no Share Grant will vest more rapidly than one-third of such Share Grant prior to the first anniversary of the grant date, with the remainder vesting in eight equal quarterly installments following the first anniversary of the grant date. The April SAR Agreement also provides for the Company to make tax gross-up payments for excise taxes that would be imposed on Mr. Raina in respect of any payments (other than any payments with respect to any Share Grants) made in connection with a change in control of the Company under Section 4999 of the Internal Revenue Code.

On May 31, 2018, Plaintiffs filed a Verified Supplement to the Fourth Amended Complaint (the “Supplement”), which asserted three additional counts related to the April SAR Agreement, including: a claim seeking to declare the April SAR Agreement invalid (Count XI); a claim for breach of fiduciary duty for adopting the April SAR Agreement (Count XII); and a claim for breach of fiduciary duty for improperly adopting the SAR Agreement as an “anti-takeover device” (Count XIII). The Supplement sought declaratory relief, compensatory damages, interest, and attorneys’ fees and costs, among other things. On June 18, 2018, defendants moved to dismiss the claims asserted in the Supplement. Also on June 18, 2018, the Court entered a joint stipulation and order declaring the 2008 Certificate Amendment and Stock Dividend valid and effective pursuant to 8 Del. C. § 205 and subsequently dismissed Count VIII of the Fourth Amended Complaint on July 5, 2018.

On July 17, 2018, following briefing and argument, the Court issued an Order granting in part and denying in part defendants’ motions for summary judgment on all remaining counts of the Fourth Amended Complaint. The Court granted summary judgment as to all defendants on Counts I, IV, V, VI, VII, and X and denied summary judgment as to Counts II and III. The Court granted summary judgment as to certain defendants on Count IX, and granted in part and denied in part Count IX with respect to the Firm Clients. On July 24, 2018, Plaintiffs filed a motion for leave to file a second supplement to the Fourth Amended Complaint related to certain disclosures issued in connection with the Company’s 2018 annual meeting, which the Court denied at a pretrial conference held on August 15, 2018. On August 9, 2018, following briefing and argument, the Court issued a bench ruling granting in part and denying in part defendants’ motion to dismiss the Supplement. A three-day trial on all remaining claims was held on August 20, 21, and 23, 2018.

Following trial held on August 20, 21 and 23, 2018, and prior to the conclusion of post-trial briefing, on January 23, 2019, the Parties entered into a Stipulation and Agreement of Settlement (the “Settlement Agreement”) pursuant to which the Parties agreed, subject to Final Approval (as defined in the Settlement Agreement) by the Court, to settle and resolve the Litigation pursuant to the terms set forth in the Settlement Agreement (the “Settlement”). The Settlement includes, among other things, the adoption and entry into an Amended Stock Appreciation Right Award Agreement (the “Amended SAR Agreement”) (set forth in Exhibit A to the Settlement Agreement), the implementation of certain governance measures (set forth in Exhibit B to the Settlement Agreement), and the issuance of a Form 8-K describing the Settlement and terms thereof following the final approval of the Settlement (set forth in Exhibit C to the Settlement Agreement).

The Amended SAR Agreement was negotiated as part of the Litigation Settlement and will become effective upon Final Approval of the Litigation Settlement, and includes the following changes and modifications to the April SAR Agreement:

(a)
Mr. Raina will commit to continue to serve and not resign as the Company’s Chief Executive Officer for at least two years following Final Approval of the Litigation Settlement;

(b)
any shares paid, awarded or otherwise received by Mr. Raina as compensation after the effective date of the April SAR Agreement, including any shares received by Mr. Raina from the exercise of any options granted after the effective date of the April SAR Agreement or from the grant or vesting of any restricted shares or settlement of any restricted stock units granted after the effective date of the April SAR Agreement (but excluding any shares received as a result of the grant, vesting or settlement of any Share Grants), will be excluded from the outstanding shares for purposes of the Board’s annual shortfall determination;

(c)
if an Acquisition Event occurs more than 180 days after, but not later than the tenth anniversary of, the date that Mr. Raina’s employment is involuntarily terminated by the Company without Cause (as defined in the Amended SAR Agreement), 1,000,000 SARs will be deemed accrued and will be eligible to vest on the closing date of the Acquisition Event, which number will be increased by 750,000 SARs beginning on the first anniversary of Final Approval of the Litigation Settlement and each anniversary thereafter (subject in each case to Mr. Raina’s continued employment on each anniversary date), until 100% of the SARs (including any Shortfall Grants) have accrued and are eligible to vest on the closing date of an Acquisition Event that occurs more than 180 days after, but not later than the tenth anniversary of, the date that Mr. Raina’s employment is involuntarily terminated by the Company without Cause; provided, however, that, (i) no additional SARs will accrue following the date that Mr. Raina’s employment is involuntarily terminated by the Company without Cause, (ii) any accrued SARs will be forefeited if an Acquisition Event does not occur prior to the tenth anniversary of the date that Mr. Raina’s employment is involuntarily terminated by the Company without Cause, and (iii) all of the SARs will be forfeited if Mr. Raina’s employment terminates for any other reason prior to the closing date of an Acquisition Event; and

(d)
The obligation of the Company to make tax gross-up payments for excise taxes that would be imposed on Mr. Raina in respect of any payments made in connection with a change in control of the Company will be eliminated.

The foregoing description does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the Amended SAR Agreement.

Pursuant to a scheduling order entered by the Court on January 24, 2019 (the “Scheduling Order”), post-trial briefing is currently stayed, notice of the proposed Settlement was mailed and posted to a dedicated website on February 4, 2019 (the “Notice,” available at http://ebixstockholderlitigation.com), and a settlement approval hearing is scheduled to be held on April 5, 2019 (the “Settlement Hearing”). On February 25, 2019, Plaintiffs filed an opening brief in support of the settlement and their application for a Fee Award (as defined in the Settlement Agreement), in which Plaintiffs and their counsel seek an award of attorneys’ fees of $25 million plus expenses of $952 thousand. Pursuant to the Settlement Agreement, all such attorneys’ fees and expenses that are awarded by the Court shall be paid solely by Ebix or its insurance carriers, and from no other source, within twenty (20) business days of entry of an order approving such award. Pursuant to the Scheduling Order, any objections to the Settlement and/or Plaintiffs’ counsel’s application for fees and expenses and any responses thereto are scheduled to be filed no later than eighteen (18) calendar days and seven (7) calendar days, respectively, prior to the Settlement Hearing. Defendants believe that the claims asserted in the Litigation are without merit and, if for any reason the Settlement is not fully and finally approved upon the terms and conditions set forth in the Settlement Agreement, intend to vigorously defend against them.

The Company is involved in various other claims and legal actions arising in the ordinary course of business. In the opinion of management, the ultimate likely disposition of these matters will not have a material adverse effect on the Company’s consolidated financial position, results of operations or liquidity.
Lease Commitments—The Company leases office space under non-cancelable operating leases with expiration dates ranging through 2029, with various renewal options. Capital leases range from three to five years and are primarily for computer equipment. There were multiple assets under various individual capital leases at December 31, 2018 and 2017.
Commitments for minimum rentals under non-cancellable leases, debt obligations, and future purchase obligations as of December 31, 2018 were as follows:
Year
 
Debt
 
Capital Leases
 
Operating Leases
 
Future Purchase Obligations
 
 
(in thousands)
 
 
2019
 
$
19,053

 
$
266

 
$
34,189

 
$
406

2020
 
20,711

 
96

 
32,093

 

2021
 
22,594

 
89

 
26,675

 

2022
 
28,242

 
67

 
23,355

 

2023
 
629,162

 
15

 
21,890

 

Thereafter
 

 

 
3,299

 

Total
 
$
719,762

 
$
533

 
$
141,501

 
$
406

Less: sublease income
 
 
 
 
 
(1,091
)
 
 
Net lease payments
 
 
 
 
 
$
140,410

 


Less: amount representing interest
 
 
 
(63
)
 
 
 
 
Present value of obligations under capital leases
 
 
 
$
470

 
 
 
 
Less: current portion
 
(19,053
)
 
(239
)
 
 
 
 
Long-term obligations
 
$
700,709

 
$
231

 
 
 
 

Rental expense for office facilities and certain equipment subject to operating leases for 2018, 2017, and 2016 was $22.3 million, $6.6 million and $6.4 million, respectively.
Sublease income for 2018, 2017 and 2016 was $1.1 million, $1.1 million, and $1.0 million, respectively.

Business Acquisition Earn-out Contingencies—A significant component of the purchase price consideration for many of the Company's business acquisitions is a potential future cash earnout based on reaching certain specified future revenue targets. The terms for the contingent earn-out payments in most of the Company's business acquisitions typically address the GAAP recognizable revenues achieved by the acquired entity over a one, two, and/or three year period subsequent to the effective date of their acquisition by Ebix. These terms typically establish a minimum threshold revenue target with achievement of revenues recognized over that target being awarded in the form of a specified cash earn-out payment. The Company applies these terms in its calculation and determination of the fair value of contingent earn-out liabilities for purchased businesses as part of the related valuation and purchase price allocation exercise for the corresponding acquired assets and liabilities. As of December 31, 2018, the total of these contingent liabilities was $25.0 million, of which $11.2 million is reported in long-term liabilities, and $13.8 million is included in current liabilities in the Company's Consolidated Balance Sheet. As of December 31, 2017 the total of these contingent liabilities was $37.1 million of which $33.1 million was reported in long-term liabilities, and $4.0 million was included in current liabilities in the Company's Consolidated Balance Sheet.
Self -Insurance—For some of the Company’s U.S. employees the Company is currently self-insured for its health insurance program and has a stop loss policy that limits the individual liability to $120 thousand per person and the aggregate liability to 125% of the expected claims based upon the number of participants and historical claims. As of December 31, 2018 and 2017, the amount accrued on the Company’s consolidated balance sheet for the self-insured component of the Company’s employee health insurance was $232 thousand and $332 thousand, respectively. The maximum potential estimated cumulative liability for the annual contract period, which ends in September 2019, is $3.3 million.