The Nova Scotia government has issued a statement in response to formal complaints made by the Canadian Publishers Council and others in the publishing industry regarding a tender awarded to a U.S. company to supply books to the province’s schools.

According to Halifax’s Chronicle Herald, the statement notes that the file is under review to ensure that no laws are broken.

As Q&Q reported earlier this week, there were several complaints objecting to the $347,440 contract being awarded to the New York-based Sussman Sales Company. It was alleged that the decision to award the contract to a U.S. company violates the federal Copyright Act.

The Herald quotes a government spokeswoman as saying, This situation is a very complex one involving copyright issues. Government has no intention of knowingly not meeting the Copyright Act.

Although the tender has been awarded to Sussman Sales, no purchases have been made yet.