Our employees or third party providers, or employees or third party providers of our portfolio companies may engage in misconduct or other improper activities, including noncompliance with regulatory standards and requirements and insider trading.
We are exposed to the risk of fraud or other misconduct by employees, third party providers, or employees or third party providers of our portfolio companies. Misconduct by employees, third party providers, or employees or third party providers of our portfolio companies could include intentional failures to comply with applicable regulations, provide accurate information to regulatory authorities, comply with federal and state fraud and abuse laws and regulations, report financial information or data accurately or disclose unauthorized activities to us. In particular, the health care industry is subject to extensive laws and regulations intended to prevent fraud, misconduct, kickbacks, self-dealing and other abusive practices. It is not always possible to identify and deter misconduct by employees, third party providers, or employees or third party providers of our portfolio companies, and the precautions we take to detect and prevent this activity may not be effective in controlling unknown or unmanaged risks or losses or in protecting us from governmental investigations or other actions or lawsuits stemming from a failure to be in compliance with these laws or regulations. If any such actions are instituted against us, and we are not successful in defending ourselves or asserting our rights, those actions could have a significant impact on our business, including the imposition of significant fines or other sanctions.
We have incurred litigation and may incur additional litigation.
We have been subject to various legal proceedings, and, in the future, we may be exposed to, or threatened with, litigation, claims and proceedings incident to the ordinary course of, or otherwise in connection with, our business. In addition, agreements entered into by us sometimes include indemnification provisions which may subject us to costs and damages in the event of a claim against an indemnified third party.
Regardless of the merit of particular claims, litigation may be expensive, time-consuming, disruptive to our operations and distracting to management. In recognition of these considerations, we may enter into agreements or other arrangements to settle litigation and resolve such disputes. No assurance can be given that such agreements can be obtained on acceptable terms or that litigation will not occur. These agreements may also significantly increase our operating expenses.
If one or more legal matters were resolved against us or an indemnified third party in a reporting period for amounts in excess of management’s expectations, our consolidated financial statements for that reporting period could be materially adversely affected. Further, such an outcome could result in significant compensatory, punitive or trebled monetary damages, disgorgement of revenue or profits, remedial corporate measures or injunctive relief against us that could materially adversely affect our financial condition and operating results.
While we maintain insurance coverage for certain types of claims, such insurance coverage may be insufficient to cover all losses or all types of claims that may arise.
Failure to comply with the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, or “FCPA”, as well as the anti-bribery laws of the nations in which we conduct business, could subject us to penalties and other adverse consequences.
We are subject to the FCPA, which generally prohibits U.S. companies from engaging in bribery or other prohibited payments to foreign officials for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business and requires companies to maintain accurate books and records and internal controls. In addition, we are subject to the anti-bribery laws of other jurisdictions in which we conduct business. Our employees or other agents may engage in prohibited conduct without our knowledge under our policies and procedures and the FCPA and other anti-bribery laws that we may be subject to for which we may be held responsible. If our employees or other agents are found to have engaged in such practices, we could suffer severe penalties and other consequences that may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
U.S. federal income tax reform could adversely affect us.
On December 22, 2017, U.S. federal tax legislation, commonly referred to as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), was signed into law, significantly reforming the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. The TCJA, among other things, includes changes to U.S. federal tax rates, imposes significant additional limitations on the deductibility of interest, allows for the expensing of capital expenditures, puts into effect the migration from a “worldwide” system of taxation to a territorial system and modifies or repeals many business deductions and credits.