Company: VCYT
Filing Date: 2025-02-28
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0001384101-25-000014
Chunk: 16

Company: VERACYTE, INC.
Filing Date: 2025-02-28
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1
Chunk 16
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 for these new tests as well.

Patents and Proprietary Technology

In order to remain competitive, we must develop and maintain protection of the proprietary aspects of our technologies. To that end, we rely on a combination of patents, copyrights and trademarks, as well as contracts, such as confidentiality, invention assignment and licensing agreements. We also rely upon trade secret laws to protect unpatented know-how and continuing technological innovation. In addition, we have what we consider to be reasonable security measures in place to maintain confidentiality. Our intellectual property strategy is intended to develop and maintain our competitive position.

We apply for and in-license patents covering our products and technologies and uses thereof, as we deem appropriate; however, we may fail to apply for patents on important products and technologies in a timely fashion or at all, or we may fail to apply for patents in potentially relevant jurisdictions. Our issued patents expire between 2027 and 2040. 

We intend to file additional patent applications in the United States and abroad to strengthen our intellectual property rights; however, our patent applications may not result in issued patents in a timely fashion or at all, and we cannot assure investors that any patents that have issued or might issue will protect our technology. We have received and may in the future receive notices of claims of potential infringement from third parties.

We hold registered trademarks in the United States for “Veracyte,” “Afirma,” “Percepta,” “Envisia,” “Prosigna,” “Lymphmark,” “Decipher,” “GRID,” “C2i,” “C2i Genomics” and the Veracyte logo. We also hold registered trademarks in various jurisdictions outside of the United States.

We require all employees and consultants working for us to execute confidentiality agreements, which provide that all information received by them during the course of the employment or consulting relationship be kept confidential, except in specified circumstances. Our agreements with our employees provide that all inventions, discoveries and other types of intellectual property, whether or not patentable or copyrightable, conceived by the individual while he or she is employed by us, are assigned to us. We cannot provide any assurance, however, that employees and consultants will abide by the confidentiality or assignment terms of these agreements. Despite measures taken to protect our intellectual property, unauthorized parties might copy aspects of our technology or obtain and use information that we regard as proprietary. 

Environmental Matters

Our operations require the use of hazardous materials (including biological materials) which subject us to a variety of federal, state and local environmental and safety