An ex-prisoner held in jail for a month longer than he should have been has lost his appeal for more compensation.
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Shane Gardiner was due to be freed from prison on 24 August, 2016, but he was not let out until 30 days later.
He was awarded $10,000 in damages by the High Court.
He then appealed to the Court of Appeal for more money, while the Department of Corrections cross-appealed.
Both appeals have failed.
In granting the earlier $10,000 payment, the High Court accepted that the Department of Corrections acted in good faith, but said the right not to be unlawfully imprisoned was a fundamental one, included in the Bill of Rights Act.
Giving his ruling in the Court of Appeal, Justice Miller agreed with that but refused Gardiner's appeal to increase compensation from $10,000 to $15,000.
He said Gardiner was not wrongfully convicted, nor could he point to serious emotional harm from the extra month in jail, and the amount already awarded fitted Cabinet guidelines.
Counsel for the Department of Corrrections argued it should not be liable to pay the money because of a Supreme Court ruling about the way in which release dates are calculated.
It also pointed out that Gardiner had been sent to jail nine times previously.
"The extension of a lawful term of imprisonment is less serious than a sentence that should never have been imposed," counsel said.
"The impact of imprisonment on a recidivist is less severe than it would be on one with no experience of prison."
But the Court of Appeal argued Gardiner still deserved compensation.
