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Commitments and Contingencies
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2020
Commitments and Contingencies [Abstract]  
Commitments and Contingencies

19. Commitments and Contingencies

On May 5, 2020, a lawsuit styled Schulze v. Hallmark Financial Services, Inc., et. al (Case No. 3:20-cv-01130) was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division.  The Company, its Chief Executive Officer and its former Chief Financial Officer are named defendants in the lawsuit brought on behalf of a putative class of shareholders who acquired Hallmark securities between March 5, 2019 and March 17, 2020. In general, the complaint alleges that the defendants violated the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 by failing to disclose that (a) the Company lacked effective internal controls over financial reporting related to its reserves for unpaid losses, (b) the Company improperly accounted for reserves for unpaid losses, (c) the Company would be forced to report $63.8 million of prior year net adverse loss development, (d) the Company would exit the contract binding line of its commercial automobile primary insurance business, and (e) the defendants’ positive statements about the Company’s business, operations and prospects were materially misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis. An amended complaint was filed on September 30, 2020. Defendants’ responsive pleading is not yet due and has not been filed. The litigation is in its initial stages and we are unable to reasonably predict its potential outcome. The Company, however, believes that the lawsuit is without merit and intends to vigorously defend the claims. The Company’s current policy is to expense legal costs as incurred. Historically, the Company has not carried director and officer liability insurance and does not currently hold such a policy.

As of September 30, 2020, we were engaged in various other legal proceedings in the ordinary course of business, none of which, either individually or in the aggregate, are believed likely to have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial position or results of operations, in the opinion of management. The various other legal proceedings to which we were a party are routine in nature and incidental to our business.