International software firm settles lawsuit, pays Orange County $26 million

Orange County found itself $26 million richer last week after an international software company paid a settlement, ending a lawsuit in which the county alleged it had been defrauded of millions while trying to replace its automated property tax system.

The county announced Tuesday that it will drop its lawsuit against Tata Consultancy Services, a multinational information technology company based in Mumbai, India, and that the company will dismiss a cross-complaint.

County spokeswoman Jean Pasco said in a statement that it was the most money the county had won in a settlement in over two decades.

Orange County hired Tata for a two-year contract in 2008, eventually offering $6.4 million to replace an antiquated computer system used to generate annual property tax bills. But over the next five years, the company requested three extensions and an additional $10.9 million to complete the project, leading the county to terminate the contract and eventually accuse Tata of fraud in a 2013 lawsuit.

Read more: http://www.ocregister.com/articles/county-726816-tata-system.html