(11) COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

The Company leases facilities under operating lease agreements expiring through March 2029. The Company pays taxes, maintenance and insurance in addition to the lease obligations. The Company also leases certain equipment and automobiles under operating lease agreements expiring at various dates through December 2014. Rent expense for the years ended December 31, 2011, 2010 and 2009 approximated $85.0 million, $74.5 million and $65.9 million, respectively.

The Company also leases certain property, plant and equipment under capital lease agreements requiring monthly installment payments through June 2013.

Minimum lease payments, which takes into account escalation clauses, are recognized on a straight-line basis over the minimum lease term. Subsequent adjustments to our lease payments due to changes in an existing index, usually the consumer price index, are typically included in our calculation of the minimum lease payments when the adjustment is known. Reimbursements for leasehold improvements are recorded as liabilities and are amortized over the lease term. Lease concessions, in our case usually a free rent period, are considered in the calculation of our minimum lease payments for the minimum lease term.

Future minimum lease payments under noncancellable leases at December 31, 2011 are as follows (in thousands):

The Company recognizes legal expense in connection with loss contingencies as incurred.

The Company’s claims and advertising for its toning products including for its Shape-ups are subject to the requirements of, and routinely come under review by regulators including pending inquiries from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”), states’ Attorneys General and government and quasi-government regulators in foreign countries. The Company is currently responding to requests for information regarding its claims and advertising from regulatory and quasi-regulatory agencies in the United States and several other countries and is fully cooperating with those requests. While the Company believes that its claims and advertising with respect to its core toning products are supported by scientific tests, expert opinions and other relevant data, and while the Company has been successful in defending its claims and advertising in several different countries, the Company has discontinued using certain test results and periodically reviews and updates its claims and advertising. The regulatory inquiries may conclude in a variety of outcomes, including the closing of the inquiry with no further regulatory action, settlement of any issues through changes in its claims and advertising, settlement of any issues through payment to the regulatory entity, or litigation.

Based on discussions with the FTC staff, the Company is now aware that the FTC’s pending inquiry into its toning products will not end in a closure letter assuring no further regulatory action. In the fourth quarter, the FTC’s Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection referred the matter to the FTC Commissioners for consideration of whether to bring an action against the Company for false and deceptive advertising in connection with its toning products, and the Company met with the individual Commissioners to present evidence and arguments against bringing such an action. Our discussions with the FTC staff are continuing.

Since June 2010, the Company has been a defendant in multiple consumer class actions challenging the Company’s claims and advertising for its toning products, including its Shape-ups. On November 15, 2011, the Company received notice that a multistate group of state Attorneys General (“SAG”) is reviewing substantially the same claims and advertising for toning products as the FTC. Our discussions with the group, which currently is comprised of 44 states and the District of Columbia, are ongoing.

In accordance with U.S. GAAP, the Company records a liability in its consolidated financial statements for loss contingencies when a loss is known or considered probable and the amount can be reasonably estimated. When determining the estimated loss or range of loss, significant judgment is required to estimate the amount and timing of a loss to be recorded. Estimates of probable losses resulting from litigation and governmental proceedings are inherently difficult to predict, particularly when the matters are in the procedural stages or with unspecified or indeterminate claims for damages, potential penalties, or fines. In this regard, one of the Company’s competitors, which also sells toning products, recently settled a matter with the FTC and related consumer class actions for the payment of $25 million plus an additional $4.6 million in attorneys’ fees. While the Company believes that the facts relating to the FTC and SAG inquiries into its toning products and its consumer class actions are different from its competitor’s, the Company has evaluated this evidence and other related facts and interpretations with its advisors and has concluded that it could be subject to a higher exposure as a result of these proceedings. The Company has reserved $45 million for costs and potential exposure relating to existing litigation and regulatory matters. Additionally, the Company has recorded an expense of $5 million in legal and professional fees related to the aforementioned matters, which is included in general and administrative expense in the accompanying consolidated statement of operations for the year ended December 31, 2011. Although we believe our fourth quarter reserve of $45 million and expense of $5 million appropriately reflect the current estimated range of loss, it is not possible to predict the final outcome of the related proceedings or any other pending legal proceedings and, consequently, the final exposure and costs associated with pending legal proceedings could have a further material adverse impact on our result of operations or financial position.

The Company finances production activities in part through the use of interest-bearing open purchase arrangements with certain of its international manufacturers. These arrangements currently bear interest at rates between 0% and 1.5% for 30- to 60- day financing. The amounts outstanding under these arrangements at December 31, 2011 and 2010 were $71.8 million and $111.1 million, respectively, which are included in accounts payable in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets. Interest expense incurred by the Company under these arrangements amounted to $3.2 million in 2011, $2.1 million in 2010, and $3.3 million in 2009. The Company has open purchase commitments with our foreign manufacturers of $275.4 million, which are not included in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets.