Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

Commitments and Contingencies

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Commitments and Contingencies
12 Months Ended
Feb. 01, 2020
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Commitments and Contingencies Commitments and Contingencies
Purchase Obligations
The Company has commitments totaling approximately $123.2 million related to agreements for software licenses and support, telecommunication services and store technology assets and maintenance for its stores.
Letters of Credit
The Company has $330.0 million in Letter of Credit Reimbursement and Security Agreements with various financial institutions, under which approximately $134.7 million was committed to these letters of credit issued for routine purchases of imported merchandise at February 1, 2020.
At February 1, 2020, the Company also had approximately $136.9 million in standby letters of credit that serve as collateral for its large-deductible insurance programs and expire in fiscal 2020.
Surety Bonds
The Company has issued various surety bonds that primarily serve as collateral for utility payments at the Company’s stores and self-insured insurance programs. These bonds total approximately $69.3 million and are committed through various dates through fiscal 2023.
Contingencies
The Company is a defendant in legal proceedings including a Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) proceeding and the class, collective, representative and large cases described below as well as individual claims in arbitration. The arbitrations include more than 2,100 wage and hour claims filed by one law firm. The law firm has thousands of additional claims threatened to be filed in the future. The Company will vigorously defend itself in all matters referred to in this Note 5. The Company does not believe that any of these matters will, individually or in the aggregate, have a material effect on its business or financial condition. The Company cannot give assurance, however, that one or more of these matters will not have a material effect on its results of operations for the quarter or year in which they are resolved.
The Company assesses its legal proceedings monthly and reserves are established if a loss is probable and the amount of such loss can be reasonably estimated. For matters that have settled, we reserve the estimated settlement amount even if the settlement has not been approved by the court. Many, if not substantially all, of our legal proceedings are subject to significant uncertainties and, therefore, determining the likelihood of a loss and the measurement of any loss can be complex and subject to judgment. With respect to legal proceedings where the Company has determined that a loss is reasonably possible but not probable, the Company is unable to estimate the amount or range of the reasonably possible loss due to the inherent difficulty of predicting the outcome of and uncertainties regarding legal proceedings. The Company’s assessments are based on estimates and assumptions that have been deemed reasonable by management, but that may prove to be incomplete or inaccurate, and unanticipated events and circumstances may occur that might cause the Company to change those estimates and assumptions. Management’s assessment
of legal proceedings could change because of future determinations or the discovery of facts which are not presently known. Accordingly, the ultimate costs of resolving these proceedings may be substantially higher or lower than currently estimated.
Dollar Tree Active Matters
The FDA has alleged that the Company improperly sold certain topically applied, over the counter (“OTC”) products manufactured by certain Chinese factories that were on an import “alert” restriction issued by the FDA. The Company responded to the FDA by proposing enhanced procedures and processes for any OTC products it imports from China.
In April 2015, a distribution center employee filed a class action in California state court with allegations concerning wages, meal and rest breaks, recovery periods, wage statements and timely termination pay. The Company has reached an agreement in principle to settle the matter which will be submitted to the court for approval.
In August 2018, a former employee brought suit in California state court as a class action and as a Private Attorney General Act (“PAGA”) representative suit alleging the Company failed to provide all non-exempt California store employees with compliant rest and meal breaks, accrued vacation, accurate wage statements and final pay upon termination of employment. The Company has reached an agreement in principle to settle the matter which will be submitted to the court for approval.
In December 2018, two former employees brought a PAGA suit in California state court alleging that Dollar Tree Stores, Inc. and Dollar Tree Distribution, Inc. failed to provide non-exempt California store and distribution center employees with rest and meal breaks, suitable seating, overtime pay, minimum wage for all time worked, reporting time pay, accurate wage statements, timely payment of wages during and upon termination of employment, failed to reimburse business expenses, and made unlawful deductions from wage payments.
Several lawsuits have been filed against Dollar Tree, Family Dollar and their vendors alleging that personal talc powder products caused cancer. The Company does not believe the products it sold caused the illnesses. The Company believes these lawsuits are insured and is being indemnified by its third party vendors.
Dollar Tree Resolved Matters
In 2015, a former store manager filed a class action in California federal court alleging, among other things, that the Company failed to make wage statements readily available to employees who did not receive paper checks. In 2017, a jury found in favor of the Company. In 2019, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the jury verdict. In July 2019, the plaintiff filed a petition with the Supreme Court of the United States seeking a review of the decision. The Supreme Court denied the petition and the case is now resolved.
Family Dollar Active Matters
In January 2017, a customer filed a class action in federal court in Illinois alleging the Company violated various state consumer fraud laws as well as express and implied warranties by selling a product that purported to contain aloe when it did not. The requested class is limited to the state of Illinois. The Company believes that it is fully indemnified by the entities that supplied it with the product.
Beginning in 2019, a law firm has filed lawsuits around the country, including purported nationwide and state class actions, alleging the Company violated the public accommodation requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act or its state law equivalent, by systemically blocking the aisles with merchandise.
Family Dollar Resolved Matters
In 2018, a former store manager and a former assistant store manager filed class actions in California state court seeking to recover for working off the clock, non-compliant rest and meal periods and related claims. The case has been resolved.
In 2018, a former store manager filed suit in California state court asserting class and PAGA claims on behalf of himself and a class of current and former employees for alleged off the clock work, alleged failure to receive compliant rest and meal breaks and related claims. The case has been resolved.
In 2018, a former assistant store manager filed a PAGA suit in California state court alleging the Company failed to provide rest and meal breaks, failed to pay minimum, regular and overtime wages, failed to maintain accurate records and provide accurate wage statements, failed to timely pay wages due upon termination of employment and failed to reimburse employees for business expenses. The case was dismissed without prejudice.