Commitments and Contingencies

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2011

Commitments and Contingencies [Abstract]

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

12. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

The Company and its partner companies are involved in various claims and legal actions arising in the ordinary course of business. While in the current opinion of the Company the ultimate disposition of these matters will not have a material adverse effect on the Company’s consolidated financial position or results of operations, no assurance can be given as to the outcome of these actions, and one or more adverse rulings could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s consolidated financial position and results of operations or that of its partner companies.

Not including the Laureate lease guaranty described below, the Company had outstanding guarantees of $3.8 million at September 30, 2011.

The Company has committed capital of approximately $0.2 million to various private equity funds. These commitments are expected to be funded during the next 12 months.

Under certain circumstances, the Company may be required to return a portion or all the distributions it received as a general partner of certain private equity funds (“clawback”). The maximum clawback the Company could be required to return due to our general partner interest is approximately $2.2 million, of which $1.9 million was reflected in Accrued expenses and other current liabilities and $0.3 million was reflected in Other long-term liabilities on the Consolidated Balance Sheet at September 30, 2011.

The Company’s ownership in the funds which have potential clawback liabilities ranges from 19-30%. The clawback liability is joint and several; such that the Company may be required to fund the clawback for other general partners should they default. The funds have taken several steps to reduce the potential liabilities should other general partners default, including withholding all general partner distributions and placing them in escrow and adding rights of set-off among certain funds. The Company believes its potential liability due to the possibility of default by other general partners is remote.

In connection with the Company’s May 2008 sale of its equity and debt interests in Acsis, Inc., Alliance Consulting Group Associates, Inc., Laureate Pharma, Inc., ProModel Corporation and Neuronyx, Inc. (the “Bundle Transaction”), an aggregate of $6.4 million of the gross proceeds of the sale were placed in escrow pending the expiration of a predetermined notification period, subject to possible extension in the event of a claim against the escrowed amounts. On April 25, 2009, the purchaser in the Bundle Transaction notified the Company of claims being asserted against the entire escrowed amounts. The Company does not believe that such claims are valid and has instituted legal action to obtain the release of such amounts from escrow. The proceeds being held in escrow will remain there until the dispute over the claims has been settled or determined pursuant to legal process.

The Company remains guarantor of Laureate Pharma’s Princeton, New Jersey facility lease. Such guarantee may extend through the lease expiration in 2016 under certain circumstances. However, the Company is entitled to indemnification in connection with the continuation of such guaranty. As of September 30, 2011, scheduled lease payments to be made by Laureate Pharma over the remaining lease term equaled $6.3 million.

In October 2001, the Company entered into an agreement with its former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, to provide for annual payments of $650,000 per year and certain health care and other benefits for life. The related current liability of $0.8 million was included in Accrued expenses and other current liabilities and the long-term portion of $2.9 million was included in Other long-term liabilities on the Consolidated Balance Sheet at September 30, 2011.

The Company provided a $6.3 million letter of credit expiring on March 19, 2019 to the landlord of CompuCom Systems, Inc.’s Dallas headquarters as required in connection with the sale of CompuCom Systems in 2004.

The Company has agreements with certain employees that provide for severance payments to the employee in the event the employee is terminated without cause or an employee terminates his employment for “good reason.” The maximum aggregate exposure under the agreements was approximately $8 million at September 30, 2011.