2.9 Subsequent-Event Considerations | DART – Deloitte Accounting Research Tool

Entities should have processes in place to capture and evaluate events that occur after the balance sheet date, but before the financial statements are issued or are available to be issued, to determine whether the events should be recognized in current-period or subsequent-period financial statements.

The recognition, measurement, and disclosure principles related to loss contingencies described in this chapter apply to the period after the balance sheet date but before the financial statements are issued or are available to be issued.

ASC 450-20 includes guidance on accounting for subsequent events.

ASC 450-20

25-2 An estimated loss from a loss contingency shall be accrued by a charge to income if both of the following conditions are met:

Information available before the financial statements are issued or are available to be issued (as discussed in Section 855-10-25) indicates that it is probable that an asset had been impaired or a liability had been incurred at the date of the financial statements. Date of the financial statements means the end of the most recent accounting period for which financial statements are being presented. It is implicit in this condition that it must be probable that one or more future events will occur confirming the fact of the loss.
The amount of loss can be reasonably estimated.

The purpose of those conditions is to require accrual of losses when they are reasonably estimable and relate to the current or a prior period. Paragraphs 450-20-55-1 through 55-17 and Examples 1–2 (see paragraphs 450-20-55-18 through 55-35) illustrate the application of the conditions. As discussed in paragraph 450-20-50-5, disclosure is preferable to accrual when a reasonable estimate of loss cannot be made. Further, even losses that are reasonably estimable shall not be accrued if it is not probable that an asset has been impaired or a liability has been incurred at the date of an entity’s financial statements because those losses relate to a future period rather than the current or a prior period. Attribution of a loss to events or activities of the current or prior periods is an element of asset impairment or liability incurrence.

25-6 After the date of an entity’s financial statements but before those financial statements are issued or are available to be issued (as discussed in Section 855-10-25), information may become available indicating that an asset was impaired or a liability was incurred after the date of the financial statements or that there is at least a reasonable possibility that an asset was impaired or a liability was incurred after that date. The information may relate to a loss contingency that existed at the date of the financial statements, for example, an asset that was not insured at the date of the financial statements. On the other hand, the information may relate to a loss contingency that did not exist at the date of the financial statements, for example, threat of expropriation of assets after the date of the financial statements or the filing for bankruptcy by an entity whose debt was guaranteed after the date of the financial statements. In none of the cases cited in this paragraph was an asset impaired or a liability incurred at the date of the financial statements, and the condition for accrual in paragraph 450-20-25-2(a) is, therefore, not met.

The guidance in ASC 450 indicates that entities should consider information available before the financial statements are issued or are available to be issued when determining whether it is probable that an asset has been impaired or a loss event has occurred as of the balance sheet date. ASC 450 does not specifically address events occurring after the balance sheet date that provide additional information related to the measurement of a loss contingency; however, entities should consider the subsequent-event guidance that is codified in ASC 855-10.

ASC 855-10

Recognized Subsequent Events

Evidence About Conditions That Existed at the Date of the Balance Sheet

25-1 An entity shall recognize in the financial statements the effects of all subsequent events that provide additional evidence about conditions that existed at the date of the balance sheet, including the estimates inherent in the process of preparing financial statements. See paragraph 855-10-55-1 for examples of recognized subsequent events.

55-1 The following are examples of recognized subsequent events addressed in paragraph 855-10-25-1:

If the events that gave rise to litigation had taken place before the balance sheet date and that litigation is settled after the balance sheet date but before the financial statements are issued or are available to be issued, for an amount different from the liability recorded in the accounts, then the settlement amount should be considered in estimating the amount of liability recognized in the financial statements at the balance sheet date.
Subsequent events affecting the realization of assets, such as inventories, or the settlement of estimated liabilities, should be recognized in the financial statements when those events represent the culmination of conditions that existed over a relatively long period of time.

Nonrecognized Subsequent Events

Evidence About Conditions That Did Not Exist at the Date of the Balance Sheet

25-3 An entity shall not recognize subsequent events that provide evidence about conditions that did not exist at the date of the balance sheet but arose after the balance sheet date but before financial statements are issued or are available to be issued. See paragraph 855-10-55-2 for examples of nonrecognized subsequent events.

55-2 The following are examples of nonrecognized subsequent events addressed in paragraph 855-10-25-3:

Sale of a bond or capital stock issued after the balance sheet date but before financial statements are issued or are available to be issued
A business combination that occurs after the balance sheet date but before financial statements are issued or are available to be issued (Topic 805 requires specific disclosures in such cases.)
Settlement of litigation when the event giving rise to the claim took place after the balance sheet date but before financial statements are issued or are available to be issued
Loss of plant or inventories as a result of fire or natural disaster that occurred after the balance sheet date but before financial statements are issued or are available to be issued
Changes in estimated credit losses on receivables arising after the balance sheet date but before financial statements are issued or are available to be issued
Changes in the fair value of assets or liabilities (financial or nonfinancial) or foreign exchange rates after the balance sheet date but before financial statements are issued or are available to be issued
Entering into significant commitments or contingent liabilities, for example, by issuing significant guarantees after the balance sheet date but before financial statements are issued or are available to be issued.

50-2 Some nonrecognized subsequent events may be of such a nature that they must be disclosed to keep the financial statements from being misleading. For such events, an entity shall disclose the following:

The nature of the event
An estimate of its financial effect, or a statement that such an estimate cannot be made.

Connecting the Dots

ASC 450 and ASC 855 provide guidance on how to evaluate events occurring after the balance sheet date. The period through which subsequent events must be evaluated differs for (1) SEC filers and “conduit bond obligor[s] for conduit debt securities that are traded in a public market (a domestic or foreign stock exchange or an over-the-counter market, including local or regional markets)” and (2) entities that are neither SEC filers nor conduit bond obligors. SEC filers and conduit bond obligors should evaluate events that occur through the date on which the financial statements are issued, whereas entities that are neither SEC filers nor conduit bond obligors should evaluate events that occur through the date on which the financial statements are available to be issued. To determine whether an entity is a conduit bond obligor, entities should refer to the definitions of “SEC filer” and “conduit debt securities” in the ASC master glossary.

If an event takes place after the balance sheet date but before the financial statements are issued or are available to be issued, and the event indicates that it is probable that an asset has been impaired or a liability has been incurred as of the balance sheet date, the event is considered a recognized subsequent event. The event provides additional evidence of the loss incurred before the balance sheet date and should be reflected in the financial statements.

Examples of events that provide additional information about conditions that existed as of the balance sheet date and therefore should be accounted for as recognized subsequent events include the following:

An unfavorable court ruling in a lawsuit. The company had previously determined that the likelihood of an unfavorable outcome would be remote or reasonably possible but now considers it probable.
A litigation settlement that indicates a loss amount different from that previously recognized in the financial statements.
The identification of asset misappropriation that occurred on or before the balance sheet date and for which no loss had previously been recognized.

If events constitute additional information that an asset had been impaired or a liability had been incurred as of the balance sheet date, but the amount of the loss cannot be reasonably estimated before the financial statements are issued or are available to be issued, the entity should consider whether disclosures are provided in accordance with Section 2.8.1.

A loss should be recognized only when events confirm that an asset had been impaired or a liability existed as of the balance sheet date. If a loss contingency that did not exist as of the balance sheet date occurs after the balance sheet date but before the financial statements are issued or are available to be issued, the entity would not recognize the loss as of the balance sheet date but may need to disclose it as a subsequent event to keep the financial statements from being misleading.

The enactment of a law that gives rise to a liability after the balance sheet date but before the financial statements are issued or are available to be issued is a nonrecognized subsequent event. The newly enacted law does not provide evidence of conditions that existed as of the balance sheet date. However, the entity should consider whether it is required to disclose the event to keep the financial statements from being misleading. For additional information on the enactment of a law or legislation, see Section 2.3.1.3.

Example 2-19

Legislation Enacted After the Balance Sheet Date

Company A, a public entity with a December 31, 20X1, year-end, operates in the banking industry and is subject to proposed legislation that will impose a fee on deposits that existed as of June 30, 20X1. The legislation is expected to be enacted after year-end but before the issuance of the financial statements. Company A believes that because enactment of the legislation is probable and is related to balances as of a date before the balance sheet date, an accrual should be made. However, the obligating event in this case is the enactment of the legislation, before which A did not incur a liability even though a fee was assessed on preexisting balances; thus, no accrual should be made as of December 31, 20X1. Instead, the impact of the new legislation is a nonrecognized subsequent event, and A should consider whether it is required to disclose the event in its December 31, 20X1, financial statements to keep them from being misleading.

If a recognized contingent liability is settled after the balance sheet date but before the financial statements are issued or are available to be issued, a contingent liability should be reversed as of the balance sheet date to the extent that the recognized liability exceeds the settlement amount. The settlement constitutes additional evidence of conditions that existed as of the balance sheet date and would be considered a recognized subsequent event.