The determination and application of the appropriate accounting model for tax indemnifications can be challenging.
If a company is a primary obligor to the taxing authority, it should account for the indemnification pursuant to the provisions within ASC 740, Income Taxes (ASC 740), dealing with accounting for uncertain tax positions.
If an indemnifying party is not a primary obligor to the taxing authority, it should account for the indemnification pursuant to ASC 460, Guarantees (ASC 460), which requires the use of fair value based upon the guidance in ASC 820, Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures (ASC 820).
Because of the tax advantages, this method of financing increasing costs of health care became the backbone of the system and soon went past
indemnification against catastrophic costs to include "first dollar" coverage for almost all health care expenses.
Based on the foregoing principles, the indemnification section of a property management agreement should put the primary burden on the owner and its insurance for all claims at the property.
Certain acts can be excluded from the owner's indemnification.
Owners might want to limit their indemnification of the manager to the amount of the owner's insurance coverage.
In the current recessionary climate, lessees also have negotiated
indemnification provisions, representations and warranties about prior property use or default provisions allowing the tenant to terminate the lease if a cleanup action interferes with the tenant's use of the property.
