A Southland man whose pet ducks were killed five years ago has appealed the decision to award costs against him "as a matter of principle".
Eugene Anthony Greendrake and his ducks Drakie and Duckie (aka Missy) have a convoluted court history.
In July, he appeared in the High Court at Invercargill to appeal costs in relation to the legal case stemming from events on August 18, 2018.
His pet ducks were attacked by a dog on his Nightcaps property. One died and one was severely wounded.
The SPCA decided not to prosecute in relation to the mauling.
Mr Greendrake laid charges against Wayne Alexander McConnochie, a dog owner who lived nearby.
But Judge Russell Walker dismissed the case following a judge-alone trial.
He found there was insufficient evidence to prove the allegations.
Mr McConnochie sought costs of $10,000 following the unsuccessful prosecution which he was awarded.
Counsel Nikki Pender said "this appeal is brought as a matter of principle".
"The right to bring private prosecution is real."
In an attempt to avoid further legal costs, Mr McConnochie said he would abide by the court’s decision but outlined procedural errors in the prosecution.
His submission for costs said that Mr Greendrake had failed to investigate any other potential suspects and there were inconsistencies between written and oral evidence.
Justice Rachel Dunningham allowed the appeal in part.
"I considered the judge erred in placing weight on the SPCA’s decision not to prosecute and on the personal involvement Mr Greendrake had in the matter."
While the cost scales were "hopelessly out of date", there still had to be reasons for departing from them.
The judge ruled that the one-day hearing did not involve special difficulty or complexity that would warrant higher costs being awarded.
She did not believe the case was brought out of a lack of good faith, nor were there procedural failings that would mean the prosecutor needed to be deterred.
Costs in line with the scale of $452 were awarded against Mr Greendrake.
