The Ontario government has forked over $63 million to end a failed private sector contract to connect the provincial justice system on a computer network. While it seems like a simple enough task, the “integrated justice system,” introduced by the Mike Harris Conservatives, drew fire from the provincial auditor as costs more than doubled while savings fell short.
Tory premier Ernie Eves then cancelled the deal, which triggered a lawsuit, spearheaded by main consortium partner EDS Canada. EDS was suing for $155 million, and the Liberal government quietly settled for $63 million in October 2004. The settlement only became public through a freedom of information request.