Company: TIPT
Filing Date: 2025-03-03
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0001393726-25-000028
Chunk: 95

Company: TIPTREE INC.
Filing Date: 2025-03-03
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1A
Chunk 95
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 generally enter into confidentiality agreements with employees and third parties to protect their trade secrets, know-how, business strategy and other proprietary information, such confidentiality agreements could be breached or otherwise may not provide meaningful protection for their trade secrets and know-how. Similarly, while they seek to enter into agreements with all of their employees who develop intellectual property during their employment to assign the rights in such intellectual property to our insurance subsidiaries, they may fail to enter into such agreements with all relevant employees, such agreements may be breached or may not be self-executing, and they may be subject to claims that such employees misappropriated relevant rights from their previous employers.

The steps our insurance subsidiaries take to protect their intellectual property may be inadequate and despite their efforts to protect their proprietary rights and intellectual property, unauthorized parties may attempt to copy aspects of their solutions or to obtain and use information that they regard as proprietary, and third parties may attempt to independently develop similar technology. Policing unauthorized use of their technology and intellectual property rights may be difficult and may not be effective. 

Litigation brought to protect and enforce their intellectual property rights could be costly, time-consuming and distracting to management and could result in the impairment or loss of portions of their intellectual property. The litigation process is subject to inherent uncertainties, and they may not prevail in litigation matters regardless of the merits of their position. Further, adequate remedies may not be available in the event of an unauthorized use or disclosure of their trade secrets. Additionally, their efforts to enforce their intellectual property rights may be met with defenses, counterclaims and countersuits attacking the validity and enforceability and scope of their intellectual property rights. Our insurance subsidiaries’ failure to secure, protect, defend and enforce their intellectual property rights could adversely affect their brand and adversely affect their business.

Our insurance subsidiaries’ success also depends in part on them not infringing, misappropriating or otherwise violating the intellectual property rights of others. Their competitors and other third parties may own or claim to own intellectual property relating to our insurance subsidiaries’ industry and, in the future, may claim that our insurance subsidiaries are infringing, misappropriating or otherwise violating their intellectual property rights, and our insurance subsidiaries may be found to be infringing on such rights. The outcome of any claims or litigation, regardless of the merits, is inherently uncertain. The disposition of any such claims, whether through settlement or licensing discussions or litigation, could cause our insurance subsidiaries to incur significant expenses and, if successfully asserted against them, could require that they pay substantial damages or ongoing royalty payments, prevent them from offering certain