COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
Contingencies
From time to time the Company is involved in legal actions arising in the normal course of its business. The process of resolving matters through litigation or other means is inherently uncertain and it is possible that an unfavorable resolution of these matters could adversely affect the Company, its results of operations, financial condition or cash flows. The Company’s general practice is to expense legal fees as services are rendered in connection with legal matters, and to accrue for liabilities when losses are probable and reasonably estimable based on existing information. The Company accrues for the best estimate of a loss within a range; however, if no estimate in the range is better than any other, then the minimum amount in the range is accrued. Liabilities are evaluated and refined each reporting period as additional information is known. Any receivables for insurance recoveries for these liability claims are recorded as assets when it is probable that a recovery will be realized.
As first disclosed in its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company received a subpoena from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) requesting that the Company produce certain documents regarding sponsored testing programs relating to VIMIZIM and NAGLAZYME. The Company has produced the requested documents in response to the subpoena and is cooperating fully. The Company is unable to make any assurances regarding the outcome of the investigation by the DOJ, or the impact, if any, that such investigation may have on the Company’s business and financial statements.
Other Commitments
The Company uses experts and laboratories at universities and other institutions to perform certain R&D activities. These amounts are included as R&D expense as services are provided. In the normal course of business, the Company enters into various firm purchase commitments primarily to procure active pharmaceutical ingredients, certain inventory-related items and certain third-party R&D services, production services and facility construction services. As of December 31, 2025, such commitments were estimated at $590.8 million, of which $354.1 million is expected to be paid in 2026 as underlying goods and services are received. The Company has also licensed technology from third parties, for which it is required to pay royalties upon future sales, subject to certain annual minimums.
About Commitments Disclosures
Commitments and contingencies disclosures catalog a company's off-balance-sheet obligations and legal exposures — purchase commitments, guarantee arrangements, pending litigation, and regulatory proceedings. These items represent potential future cash outflows that may not appear as liabilities on the balance sheet until they become probable and estimable.
Key signals: litigation reserves and disclosed loss ranges quantify management's estimate of legal exposure, but unquantified "reasonably possible" losses often represent the larger risk. Watch for changes in language around pending cases — shifts from "remote" to "reasonably possible" or increases in estimated loss ranges signal deteriorating outcomes. Unconditional purchase obligations and take-or-pay contracts create fixed cost structures that reduce operational flexibility. Guarantee arrangements for subsidiaries or joint ventures can create cascading obligations. Compare the total commitment schedule against projected free cash flow to assess whether the company can meet its obligations without additional financing.