Cardiff Oncology Inc. (NASDAQ: CRDF) filed a lawsuit against Nerviano Medical Sciences S.r.L on May 19, 2026, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California, disputing claims that it materially breached their license agreement for onvansertib.

The complaint seeks injunctive relief requiring NMS to continue performing under the agreement and a declaratory judgment that Cardiff did not breach the contract, according to a company statement.

NMS had previously alleged on February 24, 2026, that Cardiff breached the agreement by failing to name an NMS employee as a joint inventor on Cardiff's U.S. Patent Nos. 12,144,813 and 12,263,173. NMS also claimed Cardiff refused to file a joint invention continuation patent application.

Cardiff maintains the agreement does not require the company to name NMS employees on inventions made exclusively by Cardiff or to make what it considers false representations regarding inventorship to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

The company stated it had engaged in discussions with NMS but determined judicial intervention was necessary to resolve the dispute over the onvansertib license agreement.