Agreement for the Manufacturing of a Liposomal Formulation
Exhibit
10.5
Agreement
for the Manufacturing of a Liposomal Formulation
between
Sign
Path Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
00
Xxxxxxxx 0xx Xxxxx Xxx Xxxx, XX 00000, XXX
-
hereinafter called „Principal“ -
and
Polymun
Scientific Immunbiologische Forschung GmbH
Xxxxxxxxxx
Xxxxx 00, X-0000 Xxxxxx, Xxxxxxx
-
hereinafter called „Contractor“ -
PREAMBLE
1.
|
Contractor
is owner and authorized to dispose of the patents and patent applications
listed in Annex 1 of this Agreement (hereinafter referred to as „Polymun
liposome technology“).
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2.
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Furthermore,
Contractor has technical and operational experience, knowledge, as well as
other information and know-how in the field of development and utilization
of the liposome technology (hereinafter referred to as
„Polymun-know-how“).
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3.
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Principal
disposes of a liposomal formulation of the active pharmaceutical
ingredient curcumin.
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4.
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Contractor
has no existing contractual relationship regarding curcumin to other
parties than Principal at the date of signing this Agreement and will not
enter into such contractual relationship during the term of this
Agreement.
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5.
|
The
parties intend to apply the Polymun liposome technology and the
Polymun-Know-how for the efficient production of a liposomal formulation
of curcumin and to co-operate for that
purpose.
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§
1
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DEFINITIONS
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1.
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“Agreement”
means the body of this Agreement for the Manufacturing of
a Liposomal Formulation, signed by both parties including all annexes and
amendments thereto.
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2.
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“Ingredient”
means the active pharmaceutical ingredient curcumin (diferuloyl-methane)
that Principal intends to use in the kind of liposomes described in Annex
2 of this Agreement.
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3.
|
„Subject
Matter of Agreement“ shall mean the development of an efficient production
method for a liposomal formulation of the Ingredient and production of
GMP-like material as well as GMP-compliant material by Contractor under
application and utilization of the Polymun liposome technology and the
Polymun-Know-how. For this purpose, Principal will make available the
Ingredient and all relevant information about physical and chemical
properties and descriptions of according analytical methods. Principal and
Contractor will cooperate to issue specifications for the product to be
manufactured and Contractor agrees to meet these specifications if
possible by commercially reasonable
efforts.
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page 1 of
9
Exhibit
10.5
4.
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„Contractual
Intellectual Property Rights“ shall
mean
|
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a)
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all
patents and patent applications listed in Annex 1, as well as patents that
will be issued following these patent
applications;
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b)
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all
further intellectual property rights including additional patents, process
patents, etc., which Contractor will file or acquire during the term of
this Agreement in connection with the liposome
technology.
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5.
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„Contractual
Know-how“ shall mean all technical and operational experience, knowledge,
results from development and experiments, especially data and knowledge
about production, production procedures, application technologies,
reports, modifications, improvements as well as other information and
know-how of Contractor regarding the liposome technology
that
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a)
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exist
directly and indirectly at signing of this Agreement at the Contractor
and
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b)
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are
acquired during the term of this
Agreement.
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§
2
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PROPRIETARY
RIGHTS
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1.
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All
Know-How and Proprietary Rights of Principal existing on September 6, 2007
(thereinafter referred to as “Effective Date”) hereof or arising during
the term of this Agreement from the separate and independent efforts of
Principal (“Background Rights of Principal”) shall be the sole and
exclusive property of Principal. Contractor shall have no right or license
to use any such Background Rights of Principal except as may be necessary
for performing hereunder.
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2.
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All
Know-How and Proprietary Rights of Contractor existing on the Effective
Date hereof or arising during the term of this Agreement from the separate
and independent efforts of Contractor (“Background Rights of Contractor”)
shall be the sole and exclusive property of Contractor. Principal shall
have no right or license to use any such Background Rights of Contractor
except as may be necessary for performing hereunder. Notwithstanding the
foregoing, Contractor and Principal may negotiate in good faith license
terms for Background Rights of Contractor at any further point in time.
However, Contractor shall disclose in writing any such Background Rights
of Contractor as soon as practicable or prior to use, whichever occurs
first, Ingredient so that Principal may have the opportunity to accept its
use, provide alternatives or terminate this Agreement at Principal’s sole
discretion.
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3.
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All
Proprietary Rights arising from Development Activities of Contractor
and/or its agents and subcontractors, solely by Contractor or jointly or
severally with the assistance activities of Principal regarding the
Ingredient (“Ingredient Resulting Proprietary Rights”), shall be the sole
and exclusive property of Principal. Principal shall have the right to
prepare, file, prosecute, obtain and maintain at its sole expense patent
applications and patents relating to Ingredient Resulting Proprietary
Rights in countries of its choice. Both parties agree that each will
identify and memorialize Ingredient Resulting Proprietary Rights for
itself and the other party. Contractor hereby assigns and conveys to
Principal all right, title, and interest in and to such Ingredient
Resulting Proprietary Rights and agrees to execute any and all legal
instruments reasonably requested by Principal to effect, acknowledge, or
perfect such assignment and conveyance. Notwithstanding the limitations of
existing and disclosed agreements with third parties, Contractor
represents and warrants that each and every officer, employee, agent and
subcontractor assigned to work for Principal hereunder shall have entered
into an agreement with Contractor for the assignment of relevant
Ingredient Resulting Proprietary Rights to Contractor. In addition,
Contractor, its agents, and subcontractors shall treat such Ingredient
Resulting Proprietary Rights confidentially under the provisions of § 8
and shall have no right or license to use such Ingredient Resulting
Proprietary Rights for any purpose other than as expressly set forth
herein. Principal will name those employees and consultants of Contractor
as inventors on patent applications who have substantially contributed to
the according invention. However, Principal has no obligation whatsoever
to compensate such inventors for their
contribution.
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page 2 of
9
Exhibit
10.5
4.
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All
Proprietary Rights arising from Development Activities of Contractor
and/or its agents and subcontractors, solely by Contractor or jointly or
severally with the assistance activities of Principal regarding the
Polymun liposome technology in general (“PLT Resulting Proprietary
Rights”), shall be the sole and exclusive property of Contractor.
Contractor shall have the right to prepare, file, prosecute, obtain and
maintain at its sole expense patent applications and patents relating to
PLT Resulting Proprietary Rights in countries of its choice. Both parties
agree that each will identify and memorialize PLT Resulting Proprietary
Rights for itself and the other party. Principal hereby assigns and
conveys to Contractor all right, title, and interest in and to such PLT
Resulting Proprietary Rights and agrees to execute any and all legal
instruments reasonably requested by Contractor to effect, acknowledge, or
perfect such assignment and conveyance. Notwithstanding the limitations of
existing and disclosed agreements with third parties, Principal represents
and warrants that each and every officer, employee, agent and
subcontractor assigned to work for Principal hereunder shall have entered
into an agreement with Principal for the assignment of relevant PLT
Resulting Proprietary Rights to Principal. In addition, Principal, its
agents, and subcontractors shall treat such PLT Resulting Proprietary
Rights confidentially under the provisions of § 8 and shall have no right
or license to use such PLT Resulting Proprietary Rights for any purpose
other than as expressly set forth herein. Contractor will name those
employees and consultants of Principal as inventors on patent applications
who have substantially contributed to the according invention. However,
Contractor has no obligation whatsoever to compensate such inventors for
their contribution. Notwithstanding the foregoing, Contractor and
Principal may negotiate in good faith license terms for PLT Resulting
Proprietary Rights at any further point in time, for which Principal shall
have a right of first refusal for PLT Resulting Proprietary Rights that
includes Ingredient Resulting Proprietary Rights. However, Contractor
shall disclose in writing any such PLT Resulting Proprietary Rights as
soon as practicable or prior to use, whichever occurs first, with the
Ingredient so that Principal may have the opportunity to accept its use,
provide alternatives or terminate this Agreement at Principal’s sole
discretion.
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§
3
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DEVELOPMENT
ACTIVITIES AND RELATED OBLIGATIONS
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1.
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Delivery
of the Subject Matter of Agreement will be in form of one or more reports
about the development and test samples of the liposomal formulation of the
Ingredient produced according this development. A binding working schedule
is given in Annex 2 of this Agreement. During the term of this Agreement,
both parties shall cooperate closely and shall share Know-How pursuant the
provisions of this Agreement.
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page 3 of
9
Exhibit
10.5
2.
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Contractor
shall apply and assign all necessary personnel, equipment, supplies, and
all other appropriate resources at its disposal to perform its obligations
under this Agreement. Contractor shall keep Principal regularly and
periodically informed of the progress of the Development Activities via
meetings and technical reviews. Should Contractor experience or anticipate
any problems associated in performing this Agreement, Contractor shall
immediately notify Principal in writing of such problems, its expected
duration and the reasons thereof. The parties will consult and agree to a
resolution to the problem.
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§
4
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TERM
AND TERMINATION
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1.
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The
term of this Agreement begins at the Execution Date and ends on the
31st
of December 2009 and can be extended upon written agreement of both
parties. Timelines are given in the working schedule described in Annex 2
of this Agreement. The timeline for Part 1 of the working schedule as
described in Annex 2 of this Agreement starts with the receipt of the
Ingredient including all information and data according § 1.3., or at
signing of this Agreement – whatever is
later.
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2.
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Principal
or Contractor may terminate this Agreement upon fifteen (15) days prior
written notice to the other party if (i) either Principal or Contractor
shall become insolvent or (ii) make a general assignment for the benefit
of creditors, or (iii) the opening of bankruptcy proceedings is denied for
lack of assets. In case of termination by Principal upon causes defined in
this paragraph 4.2., Principal will receive a perpetual, world wide,
non-exclusive license to use any process technology owned by or licensed
to Contractor to the extent required in order to produce the liposomal
formulation of the Ingredient.
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3.
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Principal
or Contractor may terminate this Agreement at any time for any material
breach of any of the provisions hereof upon thirty (30) days prior written
notice to the other party, provided that during such thirty (30) – day
period the default is not cured to the reasonable satisfaction of the
party giving notice.
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4.
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In
the event of termination of this Agreement pursuant to any of the above
provisions, Contractor shall have a duty to mitigate its damages,
including (a) cease all Development Activities for Principal pursuant to
this Agreement, (b) take all steps necessary to cancel or to limit to a
minimum any commitments with third parties ancillary to the Development
Activities pursuant to this Agreement, (c) inventory and provide a list to
Principal of all work in progress and the results of the Development
Activities pursuant to this Agreement (thereinafter referred to as “Work
Product”) pursuant to this Agreement, (d) upon request of Principal,
promptly deliver to Principal all Work Product and transfer to Principal
all drawings, all partially or fully completed deliverables, and all other
Know-How comprising or forming a basis for Ingredient and Jointly
Resulting Proprietary Rights.
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5.
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Upon
the successful conclusion of Contractor’s Development Activities under
this Agreement, or any extensions thereof, or upon any earlier termination
hereof, Contractor shall return all materials, documentation, substances,
equipment delivered by or on behalf of Principal and/or shall transfer to
Principal other tangible items which were created or procured pursuant to
this Agreement and relate to the Resulting Proprietary Rights
(“Materials”) that Contractor may have in its possession or control. Any
Materials shall be the property of Principal and, for so long as such
Materials are permitted to be in the possession or control of Contractor,
shall be used by Contractor only as directed by Principal. In order to
assist Principal in the disposition of such Materials, Contractor shall,
promptly upon the conclusion or termination of this Agreement, provide
Principal with a written inventory of all such Materials. Such inventory
shall be in sufficient detail to enable Principal to identify and confirm
the return of the Materials formerly delivered by Principal. Principal
shall further be given reasonable access to the facilities of Contractor
and any involved third party contractors of Contractor in order to
identify and inspect such
Materials.
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page 4 of
9
Exhibit
10.5
§
5
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PRICE,
PAYMENT AND DELIVERY
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1.
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The
price for the Subject Matter of Agreement is given in Annex 2 of this
Agreement including all applicable taxes except sales/use
tax.
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2.
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Contractor
shall send to Principal individual invoices with a reference to this
Agreement within thirty (30) days after the condition for a payment is
fulfilled (see § 3.1.). Principal shall pay the invoiced amount within
thirty (30) days after receipt of a correct invoice. Payment shall be
considered made on the date Principal transfers the payment to Contractor.
Payments, that are not been received within sixty (60) days after
Principal receiving the according invoice will be assessed interest at the
rate of 1% per month commencing as on the 31st
day after Principal receiving the according invoice. Principal’s payment
obligation under this § 5 shall survive any termination or expiration of
this Agreement. Payment shall not constitute acceptance of the delivery.
Payment shall not prejudice Principal’s right to return a nonconforming
delivery nor its right to receive credit or reimbursement for such
nonconforming delivery.
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3.
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Reports
will be delivered in form of electronic files as well as hard copies. Test
samples, GMP-like material and GMP material will be stored and packaged at
Polymun following all applicable guidelines. Transport will to Principal
or to a third party indicated by Principal will be performed by Polymun
FCA (“Free Carrier”) as defined by INCOTERMS 2000 by a transport service
designated by Principal.
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§
6
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WARRANTIES
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1.
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Contractor
warrants, that he is the unrestricted owner of the Contractual
Intellectual Property Rights and the Contractual Know-how and that he can
freely dispose of it.
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2.
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Contractor
warrants the completeness and accuracy of his information in context with
the Contractual Intellectual Property Rights, the Contractual Know-how,
and the Subject Matter of
Agreement.
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3.
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Contractor
warrants that during the term of this Agreement he will not enter into an
collaboration regarding the Ingredient with any other party than Principal
and Principal’s partner for the
Ingredient.
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4.
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Principal
warrants that to the best of his knowledge he is entitled to conclude this
Agreement regarding the Ingredient and the liposomal formulation of the
Ingredient.
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§
7
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MAINTENANCE
OF THE CONTRACTUAL INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
RIGHTS
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Contractor
is obliged to maintain the Contractual Intellectual Property Rights during the
term of this Agreement at his own costs.
§
8
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CONFIDENTIALITY
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1.
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Contractor
and Principal agree to strictly keep secret and to use only for the
purpose of this Agreement any data, information, know-how, results etc.
(“Information”) disclosed by and received from each other or developed
under the terms of this Agreement. The Information will be transferred
only to those employees to the extend necessary for the implementation of
this Agreement, that are themselves obliged to
confidentiality.
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page 5 of
9
Exhibit
10.5
2.
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The
obligation for confidentiality does not apply to Information
that
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a)
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was
in the possession of a party at the time of the conclusion of this
Agreement as shown by competent
evidence;
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b)
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at
the time of the conclusion of this Agreement was in the public
domain;
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c)
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after
the conclusion of this Agreement becomes part of the public domain without
a breach of this Agreement;
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d)
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after
singing of this Agreement is disclosed to a party by a third party not
under direct or indirect confidentiality obligation to the other
party;
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e)
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was
agreed between the parties for release to other
parties.
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3.
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This
confidentiality obligation is valid for ten (10) years from signing of
this Agreement.
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§
9
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FORCE
MAJEURE
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No party
shall be liable to the other party in damages or otherwise by reason of any
failure or delay in performance of this Agreement if such delay or failure is
due to any event beyond the control of the parties, including, without
limitation, fire, explosion, weather, disease, war, acts of terrorism,
insurrection, civil strife, riots, government action or power failure, provided,
however, that the party who is unable to perform resumes performance as soon as
possible following the end of the event causing delay or failure. Any deadline
or time for performance specified in this Agreement which falls due during or
subsequent to the occurrence of any of the events referred to above shall be
automatically extended for a period of time equal to the period of delay caused
by any such event.
§
10
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GOVERNING
LAW AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION
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Governing
Law and Arbitration. This Agreement shall be construed and governed in
accordance with the laws of Austria, without giving effect to conflict of law
provisions of any jurisdiction. In the event that a party to this Agreement
perceives the existence of a dispute with the other party concerning any right
or duty provided for herein, the President, Chief Executive Officer or designee
with authority to resolve the dispute completely, of each of the parties will,
as soon as practicable, confer in an attempt to resolve the dispute. Any and all
claims, disputes or controversies arising under, out of, or in connection with
this Agreement, which have not been resolved in good faith negotiations between
the parties shall be resolved in accordance with the rules, then in effect, of
the American Arbitration Association. The parties shall share
equally the cost of the Arbitrators. Unless agreed in writing otherwise, the
dispute shall be resolved by a board of three (3) arbitrators. If the
Arbitration is brought by Principal, it shall take place in Vienna, Austria, and
if brought by Contractor, it shall take place in New York City, New York,
U.S.A. Such independent arbitration shall be conducted by
arbitrator(s) of sufficient education, scientific experience and national
reputation to address such issues. Unless agreed in writing
otherwise, the board shall be composed of one arbitrator selected by Principal,
one selected by Contractor and one selected by Principal and
Contractor. If Principal and Contractor cannot agree upon the third
arbitrator within fourteen (14) days after the notice of arbitration, the third
arbitrator shall be selected by the American Arbitration Association in
accordance with its rules. The decision of such panel shall be final
and binding upon the parties and enforceable in any court of competent
jurisdiction.
page 6 of
9
Exhibit
10.5
§
11
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MISCELLANEOUS
|
1.
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This
Agreement shall be executed in two (2) copies in English language. Each
party shall receive a duly signed copy. Annex 1 and Annex 2 mentioned in
this Agreement form an integral part
thereof.
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2.
|
The
acts to be taken by each party are undertaken by it as an independent
contractor and not as an agent or partner of the other party. Neither
party shall enter into or incur, or hold itself out to third parties as
having authority to enter into or incur, on behalf of the other party, any
contractual obligations, expenses, or liabilities
whatsoever.
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3.
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Should
any provision of this Agreement or any provision subsequently inserted
into it be or become completely or partially invalid or impracticable, the
validity of the remainder of the provisions of the Agreement shall not be
affected thereby. The same shall apply should the Agreement contain an
unintended gap. The invalid or impracticable provision shall be replaced
by, and the gap shall be closed by an appropriate provision which to the
extent legally permissible comes closest to what the parties wanted or
would have wanted in view of the purpose and intent of this Agreement if
they had considered the point when concluding this Agreement, or
subsequently inserting the provision into
it.
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4.
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Without
the prior written consent of Principal, Contractor is not entitled to
transfer/assign any rights/obligations under this Agreement to a third
party.
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5.
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Any
notice of legal content must be sent in writing by registered mail or fax
with a conformation copy by mail to the last named address of the other
party for being legally valid. In case of a time limit, the date of the
postmark is applied.
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6.
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No
verbal subsidiary agreements have been made. Modifications/amendments to
or extensions of this Agreement are only valid if in writing and signed
for and on behalf of both parties.
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7.
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This
Agreement supersedes all prior agreement, arrangements and undertakings,
relating to the subject hereof between the
parties.
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For
Principal:
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For
Contractor:
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/s/ Xxxxxxxx Xxxxxx M.D.
9/6/07
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/s/ X. Xxxxxxxx
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(signature/date)
|
(signature/date)
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Xxxxxxxx Xxxxxx M.D. CEO
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X. Xxxxxxxx CEO
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(name/position)
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(name/position)
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page 7 of
9
Exhibit
10.5
Annex
1
Patent
Title:
Method and Device for Producing Lipid Vesicles
Country/Region
|
Application Date
|
Patent No.
|
Date of Grant
|
Expiration Date
|
||||
Australia
|
31.
October 0000
|
XX
2002215987
|
10.
August 2006
|
31.
October 0000
|
||||
Xxxxxx
|
31.
October 2001
|
CA
2,427,640
|
5. September 2006
|
31.
October 2021
|
||||
Europe
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31.
October 2001
|
EP
1 337 322
|
9.
June 2004
|
31.
October 2021
|
||||
USA
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28.
August 2003
|
US
6,843,942
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18.
January 2005
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31.
October
2021
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page 8 of
9
Exhibit
10.5
Annex
2
Working
Schedule
Part
|
Description
|
Time
|
Price
|
|||
1
|
The
preparation of a liposomal formulation of the Ingredient employing a
composition of lipids defined by Principal (DMPC:DMPG = 90:10 w/w) will be
optimized applying Polymun’s preparation method in order to generate
liposomes of the following specifications:
Average
size: 100-125 nm
Polydispersity
index: < 0.25
Drug
/ lipid ratio: 1:10 (w/w)
Final
concentration of Ingredient: 5-10 mg/ml
Final
buffer: 0.9% NaCl or another physiological buffer at neutral
pH
All
preparations will be analyzed with respect to size, zeta potential,
drug/lipid and loading efficacy. Optimized formulations will be analyzed
for integrity of lipids, drug and release. Principal will supply the
GMP-compliant Ingredient and lipids or alternatively cover the costs of
Ingredient and lipids procured by Contractor. Analytic procedures for the
Ingredient will be supplied by Principal and established at Polymun. First
stability testing will be performed. Test samples for analysis and animal
trials will be prepared.
This
part also includes the manufacture of a pilot batch of liposomes
containing Ingredient for toxicology testing and a batch of liposomes
without Ingredient and filled to glass vials. Written production
procedures will be created for this purpose (“GMP-like material”). The
maximal volume of this material in sum is 20 liters. Preliminary stability
testing will be performed (6 months).
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4
months
|
€
100.000
|
|||
Go
/ no-go decision by Principal
|
||||||
2
|
This
part includes the manufacture of first GMP-compliant material of liposomes
containing Ingredient according specifications for clinical application.
The maximal volume per batch is 100 liters. Principal will supply the
GMP-compliant Ingredient and lipids or alternatively cover the costs of
Ingredient and lipids procured by Contractor. Sterile filling of the
material to a maximum of several hundred glass vials will be performed at
Polymun. For higher numbers of vials a subcontractor will be organized by
Contactor in agreement with Principal and such additional costs paid by
Principal.
Stability
studies for the GMP-compliant batch will be performed at Polymun at time
points (in months): 0, 1, 2, 3, 6, 9, 12, 18 and 24. Stability testing
will be performed at storage temperature. Additionally, accelerated
stability studies will be performed. Sufficient documentation for IND or
IMPD, respectively, will be provided by Contractor to
Principal.
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10
weeks
(for
GMP-
material)
|
€
180.000
|
|||
3
|
Additional
production runs for GMP-compliant material according Part 3 upon notice of
Principal. Principal will supply the GMP-compliant Ingredient and lipids
or alternatively cover the costs of Ingredient and lipids procured by
Contractor.
|
10
weeks
|
€
130.000
per
production
|
Payment
schedule:
50% of
the costs for Part 1 upon signing of this Agreement
50% of
the costs for Part 1 upon delivery of a summary report about Part 1 plus
material for preclinical studies
Costs for
Part 2 upon delivery of GMP-compliant batch
Costs for
Part 3 upon delivery of every additional GMP-compliant batch
page 9 of
9