Note 12. Commitments and Contingencies

Legal Proceedings

The Company is subject to legal proceedings and claims that have arisen in the ordinary course of its business and have not been finally adjudicated. Although there can be no assurance as to the ultimate disposition of these matters, it is management’s opinion, based upon the information available at this time, that the expected outcome of these matters, individually and in the aggregate, will not have a material adverse effect on the results of operations and financial condition of the Company.

Loyalty Memberships and Magazine Subscriptions Class Action

On November 14, 2018, three consumers filed a punitive class action complaint against the Company and Synapse Group, Inc. in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, Boston Division (Case No.1:18-cv-12377-DPW) concerning enrollment in the Company’s Backstage Pass VIP loyalty program and associated magazine subscriptions. The complaint alleged, among other things, that the Company’s “negative option marketing” misled consumers into enrolling for membership and subscriptions without obtaining the consumers’ consent. The complaint sought to represent a nationwide class of “all persons in the United States” who were enrolled in and/or charged for Backstage Pass VIP memberships and/or magazine subscriptions, and to obtain statutory and actual damages on their behalf.

On April 11, 2019, the plaintiffs voluntarily dismissed their lawsuit. On May 8, 2019, two of the plaintiffs from the dismissed lawsuit filed a similar putative class action in Massachusetts state court (Civ. Act. No. 197CV00331, Mass. Super. Ct. Hampden Cty.), based on the same allegations, but this time seeking to represent only a class of “FYE customers in Massachusetts” who were charged for VIP Backstage Pass Memberships and/or magazine subscriptions. The Company removed that lawsuit back to federal court on June 12, 2019, and then filed a motion to dismiss and/or strike the plaintiff’s class action allegations on June 28, 2019. On February 2, 2021 the court granted the Company’s motion, struck the class action allegations, and dismissed the individual plaintiffs’ claims for lack of jurisdiction. Plaintiffs appealed the court’s decision on February 24, 2021.   The parties participated in a mandatory court-annexed mediation session on April 8, 2021. The parties agreed on terms to resolve the matter fully and finally, and the appeal was dismissed without material impact on the financial results of the Company.

Store Manager Class Actions

There are two pending class actions. The first, Spack v. Trans World Entertainment Corp. was originally filed in the District of New Jersey, April 2017 (the “Spack Action”). The Spack Action alleges that the Company misclassified Store Managers (“SMs”) as exempt nationwide. It also alleges that Trans World improperly calculated overtime for Senior Assistant Managers (“SAMs”) nationwide, and that both SMs and SAMs worked “off-the-clock.” It also alleges violations of New Jersey and Pennsylvania State Law with respect to calculating overtime for SAMs. The second, Roper v. Trans World Entertainment Corp., was filed in the Northern District of New York, May 2017 (the “Roper Action”). The Roper Action also asserts a nationwide misclassification claim on behalf of SMs. Both actions were consolidated into the Northern District of New York, with the Spack Action being the lead case.

The Company has reached a settlement with the plaintiffs for both store manager class actions, which has received approval from the court. The Company reserved $0.4 million for the settlement as of January 30, 2021. During the second quarter of fiscal 2021, the Company paid the final settlement and the matter is fully resolved.

Retailer Agreement Dispute

On June 18, 2021, Vijuve Inc. filed a lawsuit against Kaspien Inc. in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington (Case No. 2:21-cv-00192-SAB) concerning a Retailer Agreement that the parties entered into in September of 2020. Vijuve manufactures skin care products and face massagers. The parties agreed that Kaspien would sell Vijuve’s products on Amazon. The complaint alleged that Kaspien breached the Retailer Agreement when it declined to acquiesce to Vijuve’s demand that Kaspien purchase over $700,000 of products. In total, Vijuve is seeking $774,000 in damages. Kaspien denies that it breached the agreement. Moreover, on July 19, 2021, Kaspien filed counterclaims and alleged that Vijuve breached the contract, including by refusing to buy back inventory from Kaspien upon termination of the Retailer Agreement. Kaspien is seeking at least $229,000 from Vijuve for breach of contract and/or specific performance. A trial on all of the parties’ claims is scheduled for February 21, 2023. There is no determination of outcome, thus no contingencies are recognized as of the reporting date.