Cardiff Oncology, Inc. Commitments Disclosure
9. Commitments and Contingencies
Executive Agreements
Certain executive agreements provide for severance payments in case of terminations without cause or certain change of control scenarios.
Research and Development and Clinical Trial Agreements
In March 2017, the Company entered into a license agreement with Nerviano which granted the Company development and commercialization rights to NMS-1286937, which the Company refers to as onvansertib. Terms of the agreement also provide for the Company to pay development milestones up to an aggregate of $15 million, commercial milestones, and royalties based on sales volume ranging from mid-single digits to low double digits. These potential development milestones include: (a) dosing of the first subject in the first Phase III Clinical Trial for the first Product, a registration enabling Phase II Clinical Trial, or after completion of a Phase II Clinical Trial that is used as the basis for an NDA submission; and (b) upon filing of the first NDA or equivalent for the first product candidate. During the years ended December 31, 2025 and 2024, no milestone or royalty payments were made.
The Company is a party of various agreements under which it licenses technology on an exclusive basis in the field of oncology therapeutics. These agreements include License fees, Royalties and Milestone payments. The Company also has a legacy license agreement in the field of oncology diagnostics under which royalty payments are due. These royalty payments are calculated as a percent of revenue. During the years ended December 31, 2025 and 2024, payments have not been material.
Litigation
On May 13, 2024, a purported stockholder of the Company filed a putative class action in the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware captioned Vrana v. James O. Armitage et al., C.A. No. 2024-0507-MTZ (Del. Ch.) (“Action”). The Action was mooted on June 20, 2024 when the Company’s stockholders voted: (i) to elect all 7 nominees for director to serve until the 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders; and (ii) to approve an amendment to the Company’s 2021 Equity Incentive Plan to increase the number of shares issuable thereunder to 8,150,000 shares. On June 26, 2024, the Court entered an order dismissing the Action but retained jurisdiction solely for the purpose of resolving the plaintiff’s counsel’s anticipated motion for an award of attorneys’ fees and expenses. Without admitting any fault or wrongdoing, the Company agreed to pay $400,000 in attorneys’ fees and expenses to the plaintiff’s counsel in connection with the mooted claims. In entering the order, the Court did not review, and did not pass judgment on, the payment of the attorneys’ fees and expenses. The Company paid the plaintiff’s counsel fees and expenses during September 2024, which was recorded within selling general and administrative expense.
From time to time, the Company may become involved in various lawsuits and legal proceedings that arise in the ordinary course of business. Litigation is subject to inherent uncertainties, and an adverse result in matters may arise from time to time that may harm the Company’s business.
License Agreement
On February 18, 2026, Nerviano sent the Company a written notice alleging that it is in material breach of the license agreement with respect to (i) alleged joint ownership of certain of its U.S. patents nos. 12.144.813 and 12.263.173 (the “Cardiff Patents”) and (ii) the filing of a joint invention continuation patent application. The Company is currently reviewing the notice and believes it has meritorious defenses to the allegations contained therein. The Cardiff Patents were based on the results of the Company’s TROV-054 study with claims that cover the method of using onvansertib in combination with bevacizumab for the treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer patients who have not previously been treated with bevacizumab. The Company intends to vigorously defend its rights under the license agreement. If it is unable to cure or successfully dispute the alleged breach, Nerviano may have the right to terminate the license agreement. This would have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial condition, and results of operations, which cannot be reasonably estimated at this time.
Historical Timeline
| Fiscal Year | Filed | |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Feb 24, 2026 | Showing above |
| 2024 | Feb 27, 2025 | |
| 2023 | Feb 29, 2024 | |
| 2022 | Mar 2, 2023 | |
| 2021 | Feb 24, 2022 | |
| 2020 | Feb 25, 2021 | |
| 2019 | Feb 27, 2020 | |
| 2018 | Mar 6, 2019 | |
| 2017 | Feb 26, 2018 | |
| 2016 | Mar 15, 2017 | |
| 2015 | Mar 10, 2016 | |
About Commitments Disclosures
Commitments and contingencies disclosures catalog a company's off-balance-sheet obligations and legal exposures — purchase commitments, guarantee arrangements, pending litigation, and regulatory proceedings. These items represent potential future cash outflows that may not appear as liabilities on the balance sheet until they become probable and estimable.
Key signals: litigation reserves and disclosed loss ranges quantify management's estimate of legal exposure, but unquantified "reasonably possible" losses often represent the larger risk. Watch for changes in language around pending cases — shifts from "remote" to "reasonably possible" or increases in estimated loss ranges signal deteriorating outcomes. Unconditional purchase obligations and take-or-pay contracts create fixed cost structures that reduce operational flexibility. Guarantee arrangements for subsidiaries or joint ventures can create cascading obligations. Compare the total commitment schedule against projected free cash flow to assess whether the company can meet its obligations without additional financing.