Commitments and Contingencies
The Company is subject to a variety of claims, suits, investigations and administrative proceedings with respect to commercial, premises liability, product liability, employment, personal injury and environmental matters arising from the ordinary course of business. The Company records a liability for loss contingencies in the consolidated financial statements when a loss is known or considered probable and the amount can be reasonably estimated. Our provisions are based on historical experience, current information and legal advice, and they may be adjusted in the future based on new developments. Estimating probable losses requires the analysis of multiple forecasted factors that often depend on judgments and potential actions by third parties. Although it is not possible to predict with certainty the ultimate outcome or cost of these matters, the Company believes they will not have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial statements.
Our subsidiaries are involved in a number of contractual and warranty-related disputes. We believe that appropriate liabilities for these contingencies have been recorded; however, actual results may differ materially from our estimates.
In addition to the routine claims, suits, investigations and proceedings and asserted claims noted above, we are also a co-defendant in approximately 116 cases asserting claims on behalf of approximately 160 plaintiffs alleging personal injury as a result of exposure to asbestos. These asbestos cases generally relate to production and sale of asbestos-containing products and allege various theories of liability, including negligence, gross negligence and strict liability, and seek compensatory and, in some cases, punitive damages. In every asbestos case in which we are named as a party, the complaints are filed against multiple named defendants. To the extent that any specific amount of damages is sought, the amount applies to claims against all named defendants.
Historically, we have been dismissed from asbestos cases on the basis that the plaintiff incorrectly sued one of our subsidiaries or because the plaintiff failed to identify any asbestos-containing product manufactured or sold by us or our subsidiaries. We intend to vigorously defend these asbestos cases and believe we will continue to be successful in being dismissed from such cases. However, it is not possible to predict the ultimate outcome of asbestos-related lawsuits, claims and proceedings due to the unpredictable nature of personal injury litigation.
Despite this uncertainty, and although our results of operations and cash flows for a particular period could be adversely affected by asbestos-related lawsuits, claims and proceedings, management believes that the ultimate resolution of these matters will not have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, liquidity or results of operations. Among the factors management considered in reaching this conclusion were: (a) our historical success in being dismissed from these types of lawsuits on the bases mentioned above; (b) many cases have been improperly filed against one of our subsidiaries; (c) in many cases the plaintiffs have been unable to establish any causal relationship to us or our products or premises; (d) in many cases, the plaintiffs have been unable to demonstrate that they have suffered any identifiable injury or compensable loss at all or that any injuries that they have incurred did in fact result from alleged exposure to asbestos; and (e) the complaints assert claims against multiple defendants and, in most cases, the damages alleged are not attributed to individual defendants. Additionally, we do not believe that the amounts claimed in any of the asbestos cases are meaningful indicators of our potential exposure because the amounts claimed typically bear no relation to the extent of the plaintiff's injury, if any.