Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

Commitments and Contingencies

v3.22.2.2
Commitments and Contingencies
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2022
Commitments and Contingencies  
Commitments and Contingencies

9. Commitments and Contingencies

Leases

The Company leases its office facilities as well as other property under operating leases. In February 2022, the Company entered a lease for an office facility in Encinitas, California and took possession of the space May 1, 2022. The Company recorded an ROU asset and lease liability upon lease commencement in May 2022. On May 16, 2022, a nominal short-term lease commenced in Australia. Lease terms may include options to extend or terminate the lease when it is reasonably certain that the Company will exercise the option. The remaining lease terms range from less than 0.92 to 1.08 years. The Company’s Waltham, Massachusetts lease ended March 31, 2022.

Total operating lease cost for the three months ended September 30, 2022 and 2021 was $0.039 million, $0.055 million and for the nine months ended was $0.120 million and $0.161 million, respectively, and includes a nominal short term and variable lease cost.

Supplemental cash flow information and non-cash activity related to operating leases for the nine months ended September 30 were as follows:

Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of lease liabilities:

   

2022

   

2021

Operating cash flows from operating leases

$

123,249

$

107,672

Supplemental balance sheet and other information related to operating leases were as follows:

    

September 30, 2022

    

December 31, 2021

 

Weighted Average Discount Rate

 

5.31

%  

5.32

%

Weighted Average Remaining Lease Term (years)

 

0.99

 

2.1

Future annual minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases as of September 30, 2022 are as follows:

Years Ending December 31,

    

  

2022 (remaining months)

$

35,290

2023

 

104,458

Total Lease Liabilities

 

139,748

Less Amounts Representing Interest

 

(3,502)

Total

 

136,246

Less Current Portion

 

(131,482)

$

4,764

License and Exclusive Rights Agreements

We are a party to seven license agreements as described below. These license agreements require us to pay or receive royalties or fees to or from the licensor based on revenue or milestones related to the licensed technology.

On July 2, 2013, we (through our subsidiary, Kiora Pharmaceuticals, GmbH) entered into a patent and know-how assignment agreement with 4SC Discovery GmbH (“4SC”) transferring to us all patent rights and know-how to the compound KIO-101. We are responsible for paying royalties of 3.25% on net sales of KIO- 101.

On July 2, 2013, we (through our subsidiary, Kiora Pharmaceuticals, GmbH) entered into an out-license agreement with 4SC granting 4SC the exclusive worldwide right to commercialize the compound KIO-101 for rheumatoid arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease, including Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis. We are eligible to receive milestone payments totaling up to 155 million euros, upon and subject to the achievement of certain specified developmental and commercial milestones. We have not received any milestones payments from 4SC. In addition, we are eligible to receive royalties of 3.25% on net sales of KIO-101.

On September 12, 2013, we (through our subsidiary, Jade Therapeutics, Inc.) entered into an agreement with Lineage Cell Therapeutics, Inc. (“Lineage”), formerly known as BioTime, Inc. granting to us the exclusive worldwide right to commercialize cross-linked thiolated carboxymethyl hyaluronic acid (“modified HA”) for ophthalmic treatments in humans. The agreement requires us to pay an annual fee of $30,000 and a royalty of 6% on net sales of KIO-201 to Lineage based on revenue relating to any product incorporating the modified HA technology. The agreement expires when patent protection for the modified HA technology lapses in August 2027.

On November 17, 2014, we (through our subsidiary Kiora Pharmaceuticals GmbH) entered into an intellectual property and know-how licensing agreement with Laboratoires Leurquin Mediolanum S.A.S. (“Mediolanum”) for the commercialization of KIO-101 (the “Mediolanum agreement”) in specific territories. Under the Mediolanum agreement, we out-licensed rights to commercialize KIO-101 for uveitis, dry eye and viral conjunctivitis in Italy, and France. This Agreement was amended on December 10, 2015 to also include Belgium and The Netherlands. Under the Mediolanum Agreement, Mediolanum is obligated to pay up to approximately 20.0 million euros in development and commercial milestones and a 7% royalty on net sales of KIO-101 in the territories through the longer of the expiry of the valid patents covering KIO- 101 or 10 years from the first commercial sale. The royalty is reduced to 5% after patent expiry.

On September 26, 2018, we entered into an intellectual property licensing agreement (the “SentrX Agreement”) with SentrX, a veterinary medical device company that develops and manufactures veterinary wound care products. Under the SentrX Agreement, we in-licensed the rights to trade secrets and know- how related to the manufacturing of KIO-201. The SentrX Agreement enables us to pursue a different vendor with a larger capacity for manufacturing and an FDA-inspected facility for commercialization of a product for

human use. Under the SentrX Agreement, SentrX is eligible to receive milestone payments totaling up to $4.75 million, upon and subject to the achievement of certain specified developmental and commercial milestones. The term of the agreement is until the Product is no longer in the commercial marketplace.

On May 1, 2020, we (through our subsidiary, Bayon Therapeutics, Inc.) entered into an agreement with the University of California (“UC”) granting to us the exclusive rights to its pipeline of photoswitch molecules. The agreement requires us to pay an annual fee to UC of $5,000, as well as payments to UC upon the achievement of certain development milestone and royalties based on revenue relating to any product incorporating KIO-301. The Company is obligated to pay royalties on net sales of two percent (2%) of the first $250 million of net sales, one and a quarter percent (1.25%) of net sales between $250 million and $500 million, and one half of one percent (0.5%) of net sales over $500 million. The agreement expires on the date of the last-to-expire patent included in the licensed patent portfolio which is January 2030.

On May 1, 2020, we (through our subsidiary, Bayon Therapeutics, Inc.) entered into an agreement with Photoswitch Therapeutics, Inc. (“Photoswitch”) granting to us access to certain patent applications and IP rights with last-to-expire patent terms of January 2030. The agreement calls for payments to Photoswitch upon the achievement of certain development milestones and upon first commercial sale of the product.

Contingent Consideration

The purchase price of various acquisitions in prior periods included contingent consideration, which consisted of various cash earn-out payments upon the achievement of certain milestones. Below are the maximum obligation payments per the respective agreements and estimated fair value of contingent consideration payments remaining as of September 30, 2022.

   

Maximum Obligation

Current Fair

   

per Agreements

   

Value Estimated

Bayon

$

7,135,000

$

1,149,523

Panoptes

 

9,500,000

1,746,973

Jade

 

2,164,451

756,807

$

18,799,451

$

3,653,303

Other

In the normal course of business, the Company periodically becomes involved in various claims and lawsuits, as well as governmental proceedings and investigations that are incidental to the business. The Company accrues a liability when a loss is considered probable and the amount can be reasonably estimated. When a material loss contingency is reasonably possible but not probable, the Company does not record a liability, but instead discloses the nature and amount of the claim, and an estimate of the possible loss or range of loss, if such an estimate can be made. Legal fees are expensed as incurred. With respect to governmental proceedings and investigations, like other companies in the industry, the Company is subject to extensive regulation by national, state and local governmental agencies in the U.S. and in other jurisdictions in which the Company and its affiliates operate. As a result, interaction with governmental agencies is ongoing. The Company’s standard practice is to cooperate with regulators and investigators in responding to inquiries.

The Company currently maintains insurance for risks associated with the operation of its business, provision of professional services and ownership of property. These policies provide coverage for a variety of potential losses, including loss or damage to property, bodily injury, general commercial liability, professional errors and omissions and medical malpractice.

During July 2022, the Company became aware of an apparent payroll irregularity that occurred in June 2022 and resulting in approximately $0.120 million being paid to unauthorized recipients. The Company promptly retained an independent firm to investigate the irregularity and to review the Company’s internal control over financial reporting in light of the irregularity. The investigation is ongoing.

On August 16, 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 was signed into law. The Company is in the process of evaluating the impact of the recently enacted law, including whether the Company is subject to the corporate alternative minimum tax. However, the Company does not expect the impact to be material to its Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.