Gina Rinehart-backed Lakes Oil has today confirmed it will appeal after losing a court battle to over-turn Victoria’s ban.

Lakes Oil (ASX:LKO) — which is 11 per cent owned by Ms Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting — last month lost its fight to overturn Victoria’s ban on gas exploration.

The Victorian Supreme Court rejected Lakes Oil’s claims that the government’s state‐wide moratorium on on‐shore gas exploration was unlawful or ineffective.

Lakes said at the time the judgement would delay the restart of onshore conventional exploration activity in Victoria until mid-2020, when the ban expires.

Lakes chairman Chris Tonkin told Stockhead ahead of the decision — that “it’s likely that we would appeal if it did get to that situation”.

Lakes had been undertaking gas exploration in Victoria prior to the ban, spending more than $80 million in the state.

“We believe we’re in the right here and the government has done something that is very wrong,” Lakes chairman Chris Tonkin told Stockhead last week.

Lakes today told investors its legal advice “points to serious flaws in [the] 21 September judgement.

The judgement “has unfortunately not dealt with and incorrectly applied the law in respect of key aspects of Lakes Oil’s case.

“Given the strength of [legal] advice received, we are confident of success through the appeal process, which will involve review by a panel of three judges of the Victorian Supreme Court,” Mr Tonkin said.

An appeal hearing was not expected until “some time in 2019”.

Lakes shares moved ahead from 0.1c to 0.2c. They’ve bounced between 0.1c and 0.4c over the past year.