Note 4 - License Agreements	6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2013
License Agreements [Text Block]
License Agreements [Text Block]	4. License Agreements *Meda AB* The Company entered into an exclusive commercialization agreement for Ceplene^® with Meda AB (“Meda”), a leading international specialty pharmaceutical company based in Stockholm, Sweden in January 2010. Under the terms of the agreement, the Company granted Meda the right to market Ceplene^® in Europe and several other countries including Japan, China, and Australia. The Company received a $3.0 million fee on signing and an additional $2.0 million milestone payment in May 2010 upon the first commercial sale of Ceplene^® in a major European market, both of which were deferred and recognized as revenue ratably over the life of the commercialization agreement with Meda. This agreement was terminated by mutual agreement in June 2012. The Company sold all of its rights to Ceplene^® in the territories previously licensed to Meda for $2.0 million in June 2012. In addition, Meda purchased a portion of the Company’s remaining Ceplene^® inventory for approximately $0.6 million and Meda has assumed all of EpiCept's ongoing responsibilities related to the manufacture and maintenance of the marketing authorization of Ceplene® in the European Union. The Company recognized the $2.0 million payment received from Meda as revenue in June 2012. The Company recognized $0.5 million of product revenue and $0.1 million of expense reimbursement from the sale of existing Ceplene^® inventory in June 2012, since approximately $0.1 million of the amount purchased by Meda related to the Company’s purchase of Proleukin^® that was previously recorded as clinical trial expense. The Company has retained its rights to Ceplene^® in all other countries, including countries in North and South America, but at the current time have no plans to continue development. The Company recognized the remaining $3.8 million in deferred revenue from Meda relating to the original commercialization agreement for each of the three and six months ended June 30, 2012. The Company recognized total revenue from the original commercialization agreement of approximately zero and $3.9 million for the three months ended June 30, 2013 and 2012, respectively, and approximately $0.3 million and $4.1 million for each of the six months ended June 30, 2013 and 2012, respectively. The Company recognized revenue relating to commercial sales of Ceplene^® of approximately zero and $0.6 million for the three months ended June 30, 2013 and 2012, respectively, and approximately $0.3 million and $0.6 million for the six months ended June 30, 2013 and 2012, respectively. *Dalhousie University* The Company entered into a direct license with Dalhousie University in July 2007, under which the Company was granted an exclusive license to certain patents for the topical use of tricyclic anti-depressants and NMDA antagonists as topical analgesics for neuralgia. These, and other patents, cover the combination treatment consisting of amitriptyline and ketamine in AmiKet^TM. This technology has been incorporated into AmiKet^TM. The Company has been granted worldwide rights to make, use, develop, sell and market products utilizing the licensed technology in connection with passive dermal applications. The Company is obligated to make payments to Dalhousie upon achievement of specified milestones and to pay royalties based on annual net sales derived from the products incorporating the licensed technology. The Company is obligated to pay Dalhousie an annual maintenance fee until the license agreement expires or is terminated, or an NDA for AmiKet^TM is filed with the FDA, or Dalhousie will have the option to terminate the contract. The license agreement with Dalhousie terminates upon the expiration of the last to expire licensed patent. The Company incurred a maintenance fee of $0.5 million with Dalhousie in 2012, of which $0.3 million is still currently payable ($0.1 million was paid to Dalhousie in 2012 and another $0.1 million was paid in July 2013). These payments were expensed to research and development in their respective years. *Myrexis, Inc.* In connection with its merger with Maxim Pharmaceuticals on January 4, 2006, EpiCept acquired a license agreement with Myrexis Inc. (“Myrexis”) under which the Company licensed the MX90745 series of caspase-inducer anti-cancer compounds to Myrexis. The Company received a milestone payment of $1.0 million in March 2008, following dosing of the first patient in a Phase II registration sized clinical trial, which was deferred and was being recognized as revenue ratably over the life of the last to expire patent that expires in July 2024. In August 2012, Myrexis elected to terminate its efforts to develop and commercialize any product under the license agreement. As a result of the termination of the license agreement, all rights and licenses granted under the license agreement by the Company to Myrexis have reverted to the Company. In January 2013, the Company negotiated with Myrexis to license the Myriad patents and know-how as set forth in the License Agreement. Under the agreement, the Company will be responsible for paying milestone payments and royalties to Myrexis if the Company decides to further develop Azixa®. The Company is not planning to develop Azixa® at this time. The Company therefore recognized the remaining $0.7 million in deferred revenue from Myrexis relating to the license agreement in 2012 since the Company has no future performance obligations under the agreement. The Company recorded revenue from Myrexis of approximately zero and $15,000 for the three months ended June 30, 2013 and 2012, respectively. The Company recorded revenue from Myrexis of approximately zero and $31,000 for the six months ended June 30, 2013 and 2012, respectively. *DURECT Corporation (DURECT)* The Company entered into a license agreement with DURECT Corporation (“DURECT”) in December 2006, pursuant to which it granted DURECT the exclusive worldwide rights to certain of its intellectual property for a transdermal patch containing bupivacaine for the treatment of back pain. Under the terms of the agreement, EpiCept received a $1.0 million payment which has been deferred and is being recognized as revenue ratably over the life of the last to expire patent that expires in March 2020. The Company amended its license agreement with DURECT in September 2008. Under the terms of the amended agreement, the Company granted DURECT royalty-free, fully paid up, perpetual and irrevocable rights to the intellectual property licensed as part of the original agreement in exchange for a cash payment of $2.25 million from DURECT, which has also been deferred and is being recognized as revenue ratably over the last patent life. The Company recorded revenue from DURECT of approximately $68,000 for each of the three months ended June 30, 2013 and June 30, 2012, and approximately $136,000 for each of the six months ended June 30, 2013 and June 30, 2012. *Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Endo)* In December 2003, the Company entered into a license agreement with Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc. (“Endo”) under which it granted Endo (and its affiliates) the exclusive (including as to the Company and its affiliates) worldwide right to commercialize LidoPAIN BP. The Company also granted Endo worldwide rights to use certain of its patents for the development of certain other non-sterile, topical lidocaine containing patches, including Lidoderm^®, Endo’s topical lidocaine-containing patch for the treatment of chronic lower back pain. Upon the execution of the Endo agreement, the Company received a non-refundable payment of $7.5 million, which has been deferred and is being recognized as revenue on the proportional performance method. The Company is eligible to receive payments of up to $52.5 million upon the achievement of various milestones relating to product development and regulatory approval for both the Company’s LidoPAIN BP product and licensed Endo products, including Lidoderm^®, so long as, in the case of Endo’s product candidate, the Company’s patents provide protection thereof. The Company is also entitled to receive royalties from Endo based on the net sales of LidoPAIN BP. These royalties are payable until generic equivalents to the LidoPAIN BP product are available or until expiration of the patents covering LidoPAIN BP, whichever is sooner. The Company is also eligible to receive milestone payments from Endo of up to approximately $30.0 million upon the achievement of specified net sales milestones for licensed Endo products, including Lidoderm^®, so long as the Company’s patents provide protection thereof. The future amount of milestone payments the Company is eligible to receive under the Endo agreement is $82.5 million. The Company recorded revenue from Endo of approximately $3,000 and $10,000 for the three months ended June 30, 2013 and 2012, respectively and $6,000 and $20,000 for each of the six months ended June 30, 2013 and 2012, respectively. Under the terms of the license agreement, the Company is responsible for continuing and completing the development of LidoPAIN BP, including the conduct of all clinical trials and the supply of the clinical products necessary for those trials and the preparation and submission of the NDA in order to obtain regulatory approval for LidoPAIN BP. Endo remains responsible for continuing and completing the development of Lidoderm^® for the treatment of chronic lower back pain, including the conduct of all clinical trials and the supply of the clinical products necessary for those trials. No progress in the development of LidoPAIN BP or Lidoderm with respect to back pain has been reported. Accordingly, the Company does not expect to receive any further cash compensation pursuant to this license agreement. *Shire BioChem* The Company entered into a license agreement reacquiring the rights to the MX2105 series of apoptosis inducer anti-cancer compounds from Shire Biochem, Inc (formerly known as BioChem Pharma, Inc.) in March 2004 and as amended in January 2005, which had previously announced that oncology would no longer be a therapeutic focus of the company’s research and development efforts. Under the agreement, all rights and obligations of the parties under the July 2000 agreement were terminated and Shire BioChem agreed to assign and/or license to the Company rights it owned under or shared under the prior research program. The agreement did not require any up-front payments, however, the Company is required to provide Shire Biochem a portion of any sublicensing payments the Company receives if the Company relicenses the series of compounds or make milestone payments to Shire BioChem totaling up to $26.0 million, assuming the successful commercialization of the compounds by the Company for the treatment of a cancer indication, as well as pay a royalty on product sales. A license fee of $0.5 million that became payable to Shire BioChem as a result of the commencement of a Phase I clinical trial for crolibulin^TM in December 2006, and approximately $0.2 million in accrued interest, was reversed to research and development expense in 2012 as the Company believed that this amount is no longer due.

Note 4 - License Agreements

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2013

4. License Agreements

Meda AB

The Company entered into an exclusive commercialization agreement for Ceplene^® with Meda AB (“Meda”), a leading international specialty pharmaceutical company based in Stockholm, Sweden in January 2010. Under the terms of the agreement, the Company granted Meda the right to market Ceplene^® in Europe and several other countries including Japan, China, and Australia. The Company received a $3.0 million fee on signing and an additional $2.0 million milestone payment in May 2010 upon the first commercial sale of Ceplene^® in a major European market, both of which were deferred and recognized as revenue ratably over the life of the commercialization agreement with Meda. This agreement was terminated by mutual agreement in June 2012.

The Company sold all of its rights to Ceplene^® in the territories previously licensed to Meda for $2.0 million in June 2012. In addition, Meda purchased a portion of the Company’s remaining Ceplene^® inventory for approximately $0.6 million and Meda has assumed all of EpiCept's ongoing responsibilities related to the manufacture and maintenance of the marketing authorization of Ceplene® in the European Union. The Company recognized the $2.0 million payment received from Meda as revenue in June 2012. The Company recognized $0.5 million of product revenue and $0.1 million of expense reimbursement from the sale of existing Ceplene^® inventory in June 2012, since approximately $0.1 million of the amount purchased by Meda related to the Company’s purchase of Proleukin^® that was previously recorded as clinical trial expense. The Company has retained its rights to Ceplene^® in all other countries, including countries in North and South America, but at the current time have no plans to continue development.

The Company recognized the remaining $3.8 million in deferred revenue from Meda relating to the original commercialization agreement for each of the three and six months ended June 30, 2012. The Company recognized total revenue from the original commercialization agreement of approximately zero and $3.9 million for the three months ended June 30, 2013 and 2012, respectively, and approximately $0.3 million and $4.1 million for each of the six months ended June 30, 2013 and 2012, respectively. The Company recognized revenue relating to commercial sales of Ceplene^® of approximately zero and $0.6 million for the three months ended June 30, 2013 and 2012, respectively, and approximately $0.3 million and $0.6 million for the six months ended June 30, 2013 and 2012, respectively.

Dalhousie University

The Company entered into a direct license with Dalhousie University in July 2007, under which the Company was granted an exclusive license to certain patents for the topical use of tricyclic anti-depressants and NMDA antagonists as topical analgesics for neuralgia. These, and other patents, cover the combination treatment consisting of amitriptyline and ketamine in AmiKet^TM. This technology has been incorporated into AmiKet^TM.

The Company has been granted worldwide rights to make, use, develop, sell and market products utilizing the licensed technology in connection with passive dermal applications. The Company is obligated to make payments to Dalhousie upon achievement of specified milestones and to pay royalties based on annual net sales derived from the products incorporating the licensed technology. The Company is obligated to pay Dalhousie an annual maintenance fee until the license agreement expires or is terminated, or an NDA for AmiKet^TM is filed with the FDA, or Dalhousie will have the option to terminate the contract. The license agreement with Dalhousie terminates upon the expiration of the last to expire licensed patent. The Company incurred a maintenance fee of $0.5 million with Dalhousie in 2012, of which $0.3 million is still currently payable ($0.1 million was paid to Dalhousie in 2012 and another $0.1 million was paid in July 2013). These payments were expensed to research and development in their respective years.

Myrexis, Inc.

In connection with its merger with Maxim Pharmaceuticals on January 4, 2006, EpiCept acquired a license agreement with Myrexis Inc. (“Myrexis”) under which the Company licensed the MX90745 series of caspase-inducer anti-cancer compounds to Myrexis. The Company received a milestone payment of $1.0 million in March 2008, following dosing of the first patient in a Phase II registration sized clinical trial, which was deferred and was being recognized as revenue ratably over the life of the last to expire patent that expires in July 2024.

In August 2012, Myrexis elected to terminate its efforts to develop and commercialize any product under the license agreement. As a result of the termination of the license agreement, all rights and licenses granted under the license agreement by the Company to Myrexis have reverted to the Company. In January 2013, the Company negotiated with Myrexis to license the Myriad patents and know-how as set forth in the License Agreement. Under the agreement, the Company will be responsible for paying milestone payments and royalties to Myrexis if the Company decides to further develop Azixa®. The Company is not planning to develop Azixa® at this time. The Company therefore recognized the remaining $0.7 million in deferred revenue from Myrexis relating to the license agreement in 2012 since the Company has no future performance obligations under the agreement. The Company recorded revenue from Myrexis of approximately zero and $15,000 for the three months ended June 30, 2013 and 2012, respectively. The Company recorded revenue from Myrexis of approximately zero and $31,000 for the six months ended June 30, 2013 and 2012, respectively.

DURECT Corporation (DURECT)

The Company entered into a license agreement with DURECT Corporation (“DURECT”) in December 2006, pursuant to which it granted DURECT the exclusive worldwide rights to certain of its intellectual property for a transdermal patch containing bupivacaine for the treatment of back pain. Under the terms of the agreement, EpiCept received a $1.0 million payment which has been deferred and is being recognized as revenue ratably over the life of the last to expire patent that expires in March 2020. The Company amended its license agreement with DURECT in September 2008. Under the terms of the amended agreement, the Company granted DURECT royalty-free, fully paid up, perpetual and irrevocable rights to the intellectual property licensed as part of the original agreement in exchange for a cash payment of $2.25 million from DURECT, which has also been deferred and is being recognized as revenue ratably over the last patent life. The Company recorded revenue from DURECT of approximately $68,000 for each of the three months ended June 30, 2013 and June 30, 2012, and approximately $136,000 for each of the six months ended June 30, 2013 and June 30, 2012.

Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Endo)

In December 2003, the Company entered into a license agreement with Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc. (“Endo”) under which it granted Endo (and its affiliates) the exclusive (including as to the Company and its affiliates) worldwide right to commercialize LidoPAIN BP. The Company also granted Endo worldwide rights to use certain of its patents for the development of certain other non-sterile, topical lidocaine containing patches, including Lidoderm^®, Endo’s topical lidocaine-containing patch for the treatment of chronic lower back pain. Upon the execution of the Endo agreement, the Company received a non-refundable payment of $7.5 million, which has been deferred and is being recognized as revenue on the proportional performance method. The Company is eligible to receive payments of up to $52.5 million upon the achievement of various milestones relating to product development and regulatory approval for both the Company’s LidoPAIN BP product and licensed Endo products, including Lidoderm^®, so long as, in the case of Endo’s product candidate, the Company’s patents provide protection thereof. The Company is also entitled to receive royalties from Endo based on the net sales of LidoPAIN BP. These royalties are payable until generic equivalents to the LidoPAIN BP product are available or until expiration of the patents covering LidoPAIN BP, whichever is sooner. The Company is also eligible to receive milestone payments from Endo of up to approximately $30.0 million upon the achievement of specified net sales milestones for licensed Endo products, including Lidoderm^®, so long as the Company’s patents provide protection thereof. The future amount of milestone payments the Company is eligible to receive under the Endo agreement is $82.5 million. The Company recorded revenue from Endo of approximately $3,000 and $10,000 for the three months ended June 30, 2013 and 2012, respectively and $6,000 and $20,000 for each of the six months ended June 30, 2013 and 2012, respectively.

Under the terms of the license agreement, the Company is responsible for continuing and completing the development of LidoPAIN BP, including the conduct of all clinical trials and the supply of the clinical products necessary for those trials and the preparation and submission of the NDA in order to obtain regulatory approval for LidoPAIN BP. Endo remains responsible for continuing and completing the development of Lidoderm^® for the treatment of chronic lower back pain, including the conduct of all clinical trials and the supply of the clinical products necessary for those trials. No progress in the development of LidoPAIN BP or Lidoderm with respect to back pain has been reported. Accordingly, the Company does not expect to receive any further cash compensation pursuant to this license agreement.

Shire BioChem

The Company entered into a license agreement reacquiring the rights to the MX2105 series of apoptosis inducer anti-cancer compounds from Shire Biochem, Inc (formerly known as BioChem Pharma, Inc.) in March 2004 and as amended in January 2005, which had previously announced that oncology would no longer be a therapeutic focus of the company’s research and development efforts. Under the agreement, all rights and obligations of the parties under the July 2000 agreement were terminated and Shire BioChem agreed to assign and/or license to the Company rights it owned under or shared under the prior research program. The agreement did not require any up-front payments, however, the Company is required to provide Shire Biochem a portion of any sublicensing payments the Company receives if the Company relicenses the series of compounds or make milestone payments to Shire BioChem totaling up to $26.0 million, assuming the successful commercialization of the compounds by the Company for the treatment of a cancer indication, as well as pay a royalty on product sales. A license fee of $0.5 million that became payable to Shire BioChem as a result of the commencement of a Phase I clinical trial for crolibulin^TM in December 2006, and approximately $0.2 million in accrued interest, was reversed to research and development expense in 2012 as the Company believed that this amount is no longer due.