American Home Shield 2008 Annual Report Download - page 17

Table of Contents
Local, state, federal and foreign agencies regulate the disposal, handling and storage of waste, air and water discharges from our facilities and the
investigation and clean-up of contaminated sites. We could incur significant costs, including clean-up costs, fines and civil or criminal sanctions and claims by
third parties for property damage and personal injury, as a result of violations of or liabilities under these laws and regulations. If there is a significant change
in the facts and circumstances surrounding the assumptions upon which we operate or if we are found not to be in substantial compliance with applicable
environmental and public health laws and regulations, it could have a material impact on future environmental capital expenditures and other environmental
expenses and our results of operations, financial position and cash flows. In addition, potentially significant expenditures could be required to comply with
environmental laws and regulations, including requirements that may be adopted or imposed in the future.
Local, state, federal and foreign agencies that regulate environmental matters may change environmental laws, regulations or standards. Changes in any
of these or other laws, regulations or standards could materially affect our future operating results.
We may not be able to adequately protect our intellectual property and other proprietary rights that are material to our business.
Our ability to compete effectively depends in part on our rights to service marks, trademarks, trade names and other intellectual property rights we own
or license, particularly our registered brand names, Terminix, TruGreen, TruGreen LawnCare, TruGreen LandCare, Merry Maids, ServiceMaster Clean,
American Home Shield, AmeriSpec, Furniture Medic and ServiceMaster. We have not sought to register every one of our marks either in the United States or
in every country in which they are used. Furthermore, because of the differences in foreign trademark, patent and other intellectual property or proprietary
rights laws, we may not receive the same protection in other countries as we would in the United States. If we are unable to protect our proprietary
information and brand names, we could suffer a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.
Litigation may be necessary to enforce our intellectual property rights and protect our proprietary information, or to defend against claims by third parties
that our products or services infringe their intellectual property rights. Any litigation or claims brought by or against us could result in substantial costs and
diversion of our resources. A successful claim of trademark, patent or other intellectual property infringement against us, or any other successful challenge to
the use of our intellectual property, could subject us to damages or prevent us from providing certain services under our recognized brand names, which could
have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.
Disruptions or security failures in our information technology systems could create liability for us and/or limit our ability to effectively monitor,
operate and control our operations and adversely affect our operating results.
Our information technology systems facilitate our ability to monitor, operate and control our operations. Any disruption in or failure of our information
technology systems to operate as expected could, depending on the magnitude of the problem, adversely affect our operating results by limiting, among other
things, our capacity to monitor, operate and control our operations effectively. If our disaster recovery plans do not work as anticipated, or if the third party
vendor to which we have outsourced certain information technology services fails to fulfill its obligations to us, our operations may be adversely impacted. In
addition, because our systems contain information about individuals and businesses, our failure to maintain the security of the data we hold, whether the result
of our own error or the malfeasance or errors of others, could harm our reputation or give rise to legal liabilities relating to violations of privacy laws or
otherwise, which may lead to lower revenues, increased costs and other material adverse effects on our results of operations.
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