P.E.I. government lawyers move to dismiss e-gaming lawsuit

Lawyers for the P.E.I. government and nine other defendants,filed their statement of defence Thursday in the latest multi-million-dollar lawsuit stemming from the province's failed attempts to become a regulator of online gambling.

On the same day they filed their defence, the lawyers also filed a motion asking the court to dismiss the $50 millionlawsuit filed in March 2017 by Capital Markets Technologies.

The company is accusing the province of "breach of its good faith performance of contract and failure to act honestly in the performance of its contractual obligations."

In January 2018 the company amended its statement of claim to name new defendants, including former premier Robert Ghiz, and to add further accusations, some relating to deleted emails uncovered by the province's auditor general.

New statement called 'scandalous, frivolous'

In their defence, government's lawyers deny or say the defendants have no knowledge of most of the allegations in the suit. Specifically, the statement says the province "acted honestly and in good faith in all discussions" with the plaintiffs.

In the motion to dismiss the suit, lawyers argue allegationsin the amended statement of claim are "scandalous, frivolous, vexatious, or an abuse of process."

No court date has been set to hear the government motion.

According to the auditor general's 2016 e-gaming report, the province signed a memorandum of understanding with a subsidiary of CMT in July of 2012 with the goal of setting up a financial services centre in the province. The report said that effort came in the wake of the province's failed attempt to establish itself as a regulator for online gambling.

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