Dietman v Feast

The Full Court of the Supreme Court of South Australia heard an appeal concerning charges brought against a commercial fisherman, Mr Dietman, under the Fisheries Management Act 2007. The dispute arose from the discovery of nine Southern Rock lobsters carrying external eggs in Mr Dietman's lobster pots. Fisheries officers later found one of these micro-chipped lobsters, identified as lobster A, in a bin of lobsters sold by Mr Dietman, with its external eggs apparently removed. Mr Dietman was charged with taking an aquatic resource of a protected species, and with being the owner of a boat used in the commission of an offence.

The legal issues before the Full Court included whether the charges were validly laid, specifically concerning uncertainty and duplicity, and whether a defence under s 71(3) of the Act was available to Mr Dietman in relation to the charges laid under s 120(3). The court was also required to determine the factual question of whether lobster A was scrubbed while bearing external eggs.

The Full Court overturned the decision of a single judge who had found the charges to be bad in law and dismissed the complaint. The Full Court reasoned that the charges were not uncertain or duplicitous, and that the defence under s 71(3) was not available to a charge under s 120(3) of the Act. The court found that the single judge's interpretation of the legislation would render s 120(3) largely ineffectual.

The Full Court allowed the appeal, set aside the judgment of the single judge, and affirmed the convictions recorded in the Magistrates Court.