Legal settlements (Notes)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2016

Legal Settlements [Abstract]

Legal settlement [Text Block]

Legal Settlements

During 2015, we recorded a net settlement charge of $1.8 million due to the following claims:

An arbitrator ruled on a breach of contract claim between us and a service provider, awarding us a gross settlement of $8.8 million. Our legal counsel for this matter represented us under a contingency fee agreement. We recorded a settlement award, net of legal fees and costs, of $5.3 million; and

An arbitrator ruled on a breach of contract claim between us and a customer, Hospira, Inc., awarding Hospira $8.2 million Canadian dollars ($6.5 million U.S. dollars). The arbitrator also ruled that we pay 75% of Hospira's legal fees and expenses, which were $0.7 million U.S. dollars. We made a $7.5 million U.S. dollars settlement payment during 2015, which includes a foreign exchange transaction adjustment to Canadian dollars at the time of payment.