Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

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COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2011
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
6. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

Data Processing, Outsourcing Services and Other Agreements.   We have separate agreements with IBM, Tata Consultancy Services and others to outsource portions of our computer data processing operations, applications development, maintenance and related functions and to provide certain other administrative and operational services. The agreements expire between 2011 and 2016. The estimated aggregate minimum contractual obligation remaining under these agreements was approximately $100 million at December 31, 2010, with no future year’s minimum contractual obligation expected to exceed approximately $40 million. Annual payment obligations related to these agreements vary due to factors such as the volume of data or transactions processed; changes in our servicing needs as a result of new product offerings, acquisitions or divestitures; the introduction of significant new technologies; foreign currency; or the general rate of inflation. In certain circumstances (e.g., a change in control or for our convenience), we may terminate these data processing and outsourcing agreements, and, in doing so, certain of these agreements require us to pay a significant penalty.

Agreement with Computer Sciences Corporation.   We have an agreement with Computer Sciences Corporation, or CSC, and certain of its affiliates, collectively CSC, under which CSC-owned credit reporting agencies utilize our computerized credit database services. CSC retains ownership of its credit files and the revenues generated by its credit reporting activities. We receive a processing fee for maintaining the database and for each report supplied. The agreement will expire on July 31, 2018, and is renewable at the option of CSC for successive ten-year periods. The agreement provides us with an option to purchase CSC’s credit reporting business if it does not elect to renew the agreement or if there is a change in control of CSC while the agreement is in effect. Under the agreement CSC also has an option, exercisable at any time, to sell its credit reporting business to us. The option expires in 2013. The option exercise price will be determined by a third-party appraisal process and would be due in cash within 180 days after the exercise of the option. We estimate that if the option were exercised at December 31, 2010, the price range would be approximately $625 million to $700 million. This estimate is based solely on our internal analysis of the value of the business, current market conditions and other factors, all of which are subject to constant change. Therefore, the actual option exercise price could be materially higher or lower than our estimate.

Guarantees and General Indemnifications.   We may issue standby letters of credit, performance bonds or other guarantees in the normal course of business. The aggregate notional amount of all performance bonds and standby letters of credit was not material at September 30, 2011, and all have a remaining maturity of one year or less. The maximum potential future payments we could be required to make under the guarantees is not material at September 30, 2011.

We have agreed to standard indemnification clauses in many of our lease agreements for office space, covering such things as tort, environmental and other liabilities that arise out of or relate to our use or occupancy of the leased premises. Certain of our credit agreements include provisions which require us to make payments to preserve an expected economic return to the lenders if that economic return is diminished due to certain changes in law or regulations. In conjunction with certain transactions, such as sales or purchases of operating assets or services in the ordinary course of business, or the disposition of certain assets or businesses, we sometimes provide routine indemnifications, the terms of which range in duration and sometimes are not limited. Additionally, the Company has entered into indemnification agreements with its directors and executive officers to indemnify such individuals to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law against liabilities that arise by reason of their status as directors or officers. The Company maintains directors and officers liability insurance coverage to reduce its exposure to such obligations.
 
We cannot reasonably estimate our potential future payments under the indemnities and related provisions described above because we cannot predict when and under what circumstances these provisions may be triggered. We had no accruals related to indemnifications on our Consolidated Balance Sheets at September 30, 2011 or December 31, 2010.

Contingencies.   We are involved in legal proceedings, claims and litigation arising in the ordinary course of business. We periodically assess our exposure related to these matters based on the information which is available. We have recorded accruals in our Consolidated Financial Statements for those matters in which it is probable that we have incurred a loss and the amount of the loss, or range of loss, can be reasonably estimated.

For other legal proceedings, claims and litigation, we have recorded loss contingencies that are immaterial, or we cannot reasonably estimate the potential loss because of uncertainties about the outcome of the matter and the amount of the loss or range of loss. Although the final outcome of these other matters cannot be predicted with certainty, any possible adverse outcome arising from these matters is not expected to have a material impact on our Consolidated Financial Statements, either individually or in the aggregate. However, our evaluation of the likely impact of these matters may change in the future.

Tax Matters.   In 2003, the Canada Revenue Agency, or CRA, issued Notices of Reassessment, asserting that Acrofax, Inc., a wholly-owned Canadian subsidiary of Equifax, was liable for additional tax for the 1995 through 2000 tax years, related to certain intercompany capital contributions and loans. Subsequently in 2003, we made a statutorily-required deposit for a portion of the claim. On May 31, 2011, we settled this CRA claim for $1.1 million (1.1 million in Canadian dollars) and received a net refund of the deposit and accrued interest in the amount of $9.9 million (9.7 million in Canadian dollars).

For additional information about these and other commitments and contingencies, see Note 6 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in our 2010 Form 10-K.   For additional information about commitments related to the Brazilian Transaction, see Note 2 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in this 10-Q.