{"schema_version":"secwatch.filing_event.v1","accession":"0000351569-26-000123","form_type":"8-K","ticker":"ABCB","cik":"0000351569","company_name":"Ameris Bancorp","filed_at":"2026-06-12T21:20:45+00:00","discovered_at":"2026-06-12T21:22:00.288318+00:00","generated_at":"2026-06-12T21:22:27.581349+00:00","sec_items":["8.01"],"event_type":"litigation","sentiment":"negative","materiality_score":0.85,"calibrated_materiality_score":0.85,"confidence":"high","headline":"Jury awards $79.4M against Ameris Bank in wrongful termination suit; company to appeal","bullets":["Jury awarded $16.525M in economic/non-economic damages plus statutory penalties and $62.9M in punitive damages.","Plaintiff Patrick Byrne was CEO of Ameris Bank's equipment finance division from Dec 2021 to June 2024.","Company disagrees with verdict, believes unsupported by facts or law, and intends to appeal.","Verdict may have material adverse effect on results, financial condition, and liquidity; accrual evaluation underway."],"urls":{"canonical":"https://secwatch.observer/filing/0000351569-26-000123","json":"https://secwatch.observer/filing/0000351569-26-000123.json","markdown":"https://secwatch.observer/filing/0000351569-26-000123.md","text":"https://secwatch.observer/filing/0000351569-26-000123.txt","edgar_index":"https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/351569/000035156926000123/0000351569-26-000123-index.htm","edgar_primary_document":"https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/351569/000035156926000123/abcb-20260612.htm"},"model":{"generated_by":"deepseek-v4-flash:cloud@v2","generated_at":"2026-06-12T21:22:27.581349+00:00"},"review":{"review_status":"machine_generated","human_reviewed":false,"corrected":false,"correction_note":null,"correction_timestamp":null,"superseded_by":null,"related_filings":[]},"source_grounded_claims":[],"license":"Source filings: public domain (SEC EDGAR). Summaries (headline + bullets): CC-BY-4.0; attribute https://secwatch.observer"}