Contingencies and Litigation |
3 Months Ended |
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Nov. 30, 2018 | |
| Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract] | |
| Contingencies and Litigation |
Commitments and Contingencies
The Company had outstanding letters of credit of $15.7 million and $23.6 million at November 30, 2018 and August 31, 2018, respectively, the majority of which relate to commercial contracts and self-insured workers' compensation programs.
The Company is a party to various legal proceedings that have arisen in the normal course of business. These legal proceedings typically include product liability, breaches of contract, employment, personal injury and other disputes. The Company has recorded reserves for loss contingencies based on the specific circumstances of each case. Such reserves are recorded when it is probable a loss has been incurred and can be reasonably estimated. In the opinion of management, resolution of these contingencies is not expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or cash flows.
The Company remains contingently liable for lease payments under leases of businesses that it previously divested or spun-off in the event that such businesses are unable to fulfill their future lease payment obligations. The discounted present value of future minimum lease payments for these leases at November 30, 2018 was $10.4 million using a weighted average discount rate of 3.35%.
The Company has facilities in numerous geographic locations that are subject to environmental laws and regulations. Environmental expenditures over the past two years have not been material. Management believes that such costs will not have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or cash flows.
As previously disclosed in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended August 31, 2018, in October 2018, the Company filed a voluntary self-disclosure ("VSD") with the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) regarding transactions related to otherwise authorized sales of tools and other products totaling approximately $0.5 million by certain of its foreign subsidiaries to two Iranian distributors. It is possible that certain limited transactions relating to the authorized sales fell outside the scope of General License H under the Iranian Transaction and Sanctions Regulations, 31 C.F.R. Part 560. The VSD also included information about additional transactions by certain of the Company's Dutch subsidiaries, with a counterparty in Estonia that may have been in violation of E.O. 13685, as certain sales of products and services may have been diverted to the Crimea region of Ukraine. OFAC is currently reviewing the Company’s disclosure to determine whether any violations of U.S. economic sanctions laws may have occurred and, if so, to determine the appropriate enforcement response. At this time, the Company cannot predict when OFAC will conclude its review of the VSD or the nature of its enforcement response.
Additionally, the Company has self-disclosed the sales to its Estonian customer to relevant authorities in the Netherlands as potentially violating applicable sanctions laws in that country and the European Union. The investigation by authorities in the Netherlands is ongoing and also may result in penalties. At this time, the Company cannot predict when the investigation will be completed or reasonably estimate what penalties, if any, will be assessed.
While there can be no assurance of the ultimate outcome of the above matters, the Company currently believes that there will be no material adverse effect on the Company's financial position, results of operations, or cash flows.
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