Contingencies

Q&A: A Conversation With America's Top Accountant

Tammy Whitehouse October 04, 2011

In the latest of our Q&A interviews, we sat down with Leslie Seidman, chairman of the Financial Accounting Standards Board. Inside, Seidman discusses the status of FASB's efforts to converge U.S. accounting rules with International Financial Reporting Standards, FASB's work on loss contingencies, and what's next for the accounting standard setter, including a project that could lighten the disclosure burden.

SEC Still Seeks Better Contingency Disclosures

Tammy Whitehouse June 29, 2011

The SEC has warned companies for several months about improving their loss contingency disclosures to be more in line with accounting standards—apparently to no avail. The SEC staff said they still see disclosures that fail to provide a reasonable sense of expected losses from unresolved legal disputes in many cases.

GAAP Trumps Treaty in Contingency Disclosures

Tammy Whitehouse February 04, 2011

Securities and Exchange Commission Chief Accountant Wayne Carnall warned corporate attorneys not to rely too heavily on a structure often used to withhold information from investors about unresolved legal conflicts. The comments may reignite the debate over contingency disclosure.

Meaningful Loss Contingency Disclosure Could Head Off a FASB Intervention

Scott Taub January 25, 2011

Most companies are cheering the Financial Accounting Standards Board's decision to put plans to improve disclosure of loss contingencies on hold. But, as Columnist Scott Taub warns, unless companies improve disclosures in this area, FASB will be back working on a standards update before long.

Planning for Contingencies Compliance

Matt Kelly November 29, 2010

The fight over how to report loss contingencies on the financial statement has dragged on for years. Now, the winter of accounting executives' discontent may be upon us. Compliance Week editor Matt Kelly explains why contingency reporting is at a crossroads, and how legal, accounting and compliance functions may all feel the pressure to come.

FASB Backs Off Again on Controversial Rule Proposals

Tammy Whitehouse November 11, 2010

Yet another controversial accounting proposal is moving off the charts for the 2010 reporting year after the Financial Accounting Standards Board determined it needs more time to work on new rules around multiemployer pension plans. On a related note, the board also determined it will hold off on any further...

FASB Delays Plans for Contingency Accounting Changes

Tammy Whitehouse October 28, 2010

The Financial Accounting Standards Board is taking another step back from a major project on its technical agenda, conceding it won’t wrap up a contentious change in accounting for contingencies in time for the 2010 reporting year.Contingencies are business issues like lawsuits, environmental liabilities, or other events where a company...

FASB, Lawyers Face Off on Contingency Disclosures

Tammy Whitehouse August 19, 2010

There’s a showdown taking shape between the Financial Accounting Standards Board and corporate legal professionals who still have big problems with FASB’s plan to require more disclosure about certain loss contingencies.FASB decided to extend the comment period for its latest proposal to require companies to say more in their financial...

FASB Reveals Second Attempt at Standard on Contingencies

Tammy Whitehouse July 21, 2010

The Financial Accounting Standards Board has issued for public comment a revised proposal on how companies should tell investors about possible losses they may face in future periods.The proposed Accounting Standards Update focuses on disclosures related to loss contingencies, or circumstances where companies know they have a problem on their hands,...

Study Suggests Accounting for Contingencies Needs Help

Tammy Whitehouse November 13, 2009

A recent study on environmental liabilities makes a pretty convincing argument for the need to come up with some new ideas on how to account for contingencies, or future obligations that have a measure of uncertainty attached.A consulting firm that focuses on environmental issues studied the filings of 24 companies...

FASB Focuses on Contingency Disclosure, Not Prediction

Tammy Whitehouse August 26, 2009

The Financial Accounting Standards Board is refining its planned disclosure requirements around possible litigation-related losses, or contingencies, to extract more information out of management but without forcing them to compromise legal strategies or privileged information.FASB determined at a recent meeting that it will require companies to focus their disclosures on describing...

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