Item 3. Legal Proceedings
Item 3. Legal Proceedings
From time to time, the Company may become involved in legal proceedings or is subject to claims arising in the ordinary course of business including the following:
On February 23, 2021, the Company and certain of its officers and other employees were served with grand jury subpoenas wherein the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice is seeking documents and information in connection with an investigation of the Company’s hiring and wage practices under U.S. federal antitrust laws. The Company has retained outside counsel and is fully cooperating with the authorities. Although there can be no assurance with respect to the outcome of this matter, the Company believes its hiring and wage practices do not violate antitrust laws.
On March 12, 2021, a putative class action complaint was filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina (the "District Court"). The sole class representative in the suit is one individual alleging a contract, combination or conspiracy between and among the Company, Live Oak Bancshares, Inc. ("Live Oak") and Apiture, Inc. ("Apiture") not to solicit or hire each other’s employees in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act and N.C. Gen Stat. §§ 75-1 and 75-2. The complaint seeks treble damages and additional remedies, including restitution, disgorgement, reasonable attorneys’ fees, the costs of the suit, and pre-judgment and post judgment interest. The complaint does not allege any specific
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damages. On November 23, 2021, the District Court approved preliminary settlements between the plaintiff and defendant Live Oak in the amount of approximately $3.9 million, and unnamed party Apiture in the amount of approximately $0.8 million. Although there can be no assurance with respect to the outcome of this matter, the Company believes the alleged claims are not meritorious and intends to defend itself vigorously.
The Company does not presently believe the above matters will have a material adverse effect on its day-to-day operations or the quality of the services, products or innovation it continues to provide to its customers. However, regardless of the outcome, legal proceedings can have an adverse impact on us because of the related expenses, diversion of management resources, and other factors.
Given the uncertainty and preliminary stages of these matters, the Company is unable to estimate any possible loss or range of loss that may result.
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures
Not applicable.
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PART II
Text extracted from the filing as submitted to EDGAR. Formatting, tables and exhibits are simplified for reading; the original document is authoritative for anything you rely on.