Open International appeals loss of Connexion software lawsuit

FORT COLLINS — The Florida software company on the losing end of a multi-year lawsuit with Fort Collins over the functionality of its product has filed a notice of appeal.

Open International LLC and Open Investments LLC filed a notice Thursday indicating they will appeal the final judgment rendered in United States District Court for the District of Colorado.

That judgment has grown to $19.89 million. Post-judgment interest is accumulating at 5.02% from the March final judgment date.

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The city of Fort Collins, when it was building its Connexion broadband utility, decided to replace its utility billing software to accommodate the new services and replace what it had been using for other utilities.

It engaged Open International, a software engineering company based in Florida, to build the software. Open International had experience in Central and South America but not in the United States.

The software provider was unable to produce what the city required in its contract. After spending $8.6 million on a $7.3 million contract, the city filed a lawsuit, claiming fraudulent inducement.

A jury agreed with the city.

Jeffrey Sandman, an attorney with Webb Daniel Friedlander LLP of Atlanta, is representing Open International. Andrea Ahn Wechter of the Denver law firm Dorsey & Whitney LLP has been the attorney representing the city.

The case, City of Fort Collins vs. Open International LLC and Open Investments LLC, was 21cv02063 filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado.

The appeal is numbered 24-1152 and filed in the United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit in Denver.