Court documents released to the Otago Daily Times earlier this year showed Swann, acting as a trustee of six family trusts, filed the civil appeal in October.
The former Otago District Health Board IT manager, who is serving a nine-and-a-half-year jail sentence after being convicted for his part in stealing $16.9 million from the board, was not a trustee of the trusts at the time of the civil proceedings in 2009, but has since become one.
Swann argued his appeal should be heard because the trustees were not given the opportunity to defend the civil case despite filing a memorandum to the court, the lawyer assigned to the trusts by the judge failed to communicate with the trustees; and the lawyer made several misrepresentations to the court.
Justices Robert Chambers, Ellen France and Anthony Randerson said Mr Swann was given every opportunity to defend the application for forfeiture but deliberately chose not to do so.
The judges also noted there was nothing to suggest that counsel appointed did not properly perform his role.
"We are satisfied the judge (Justice Graham Panckhurst) correctly concluded on the evidence that the relevant facts were established to justify the making of the pecuniary penalty order."
The appeal court justices concluded the forfeiture orders were also correctly made.
Justice Panckhurst's 2009 decision said the Devereux Family Trust, Ferntree Lodge Family Trust, Rowan Court Family Trust, Rowan Court Family Trust No 2, Organic White Meats Trust and Fresh Free Range Chickens Trust all owned restrained property which was to be forfeited.
The decision was not specific about how much trust-owned property in total was to be forfeited, but listed at least $2.5 million worth of real estate as belonging to trusts, including Fern Tree Lodge in Dunedin and properties at Careys Bay and Wanaka.
Anna Devereux, Peter Ibbotson, Grant Fyfe and Checketts McKay Trustees Ltd were the trustees of the various trusts at the time, although Swann had "effective control" of the trusts, it said.
It listed the beneficiaries of the trusts as Swann, Ms Devereux, their children and grandchildren.
