Lobby group rages at GM court costs

By SIMON COLLINS

The mothers' group that stripped in Parliament to oppose genetic modification has been ordered to pay $24,000 in legal costs to the country's biggest genetic researcher, AgResearch.

Mothers Against Genetic Engineering (Madge) said it had only $5000 and would have to run cake stalls to raise the rest, or close down.

State-owned AgResearch had asked for $36,000 towards its legal costs for the High Court case in which Madge sought a judicial review of the Environmental Risk Management Authority's decision to approve AgResearch's plans to genetically modify cows.

Justice Judith Potter threw out the case in July, although she said Madge had raised justifiable concerns about the "informal" processes used by the Ministry for the Environment to decide whether to advise Environment Minister Marian Hobbs to "call in" the AgResearch application.

Yesterday Justice Potter said that Madge, as an unsuccessful litigant, must expect to pay costs. But she cut AgResearch's claim by a third in recognition of the "watchdog" role that organisations such as Madge perform.

Madge legal spokeswoman Kate Woodd said the organisation was still outraged by the size of the costs order.

"It was well known by the court and AgResearch the amount of money we had available to us, and the size of this costs order, if enforced at this time, will send Madge to the wall.

"This decision makes a mockery of the argument that the public's right to access to justice must be protected."

The group could not afford to appeal against either the substantive judgment or the costs order.

Legal sources said cost orders for a case that involved a three-day hearing, such as the Madge case, often ran to well above $36,000.

Auckland barrister Rodney Harrison, QC, said a substantial reduction of cost orders in public-interest cases was relatively common.

AgResearch declined to comment.

Nine Madge members stripped in Parliament two weeks ago to reveal pink bras in a protest against the planned removal of the present ban on commercial release of genetically modified organisms on October 29.

They plan an anti-GM march in Auckland on October 11.

AgResearch plans to bring in private investors to help pay for its programme to genetically modify cows' milk to produce proteins which can help treat diseases such as multiple sclerosis.