Hillsong founder Brian Houston hit by $1million legal bill after judge rules he SHOULD have faced trial for allegedly covering up father’s sex abuse – despite acquittal

Hillsong founder Brian Houston failed to get his legal costs covered after he was acquitted of allegations he covered up abuse by his late father.

The 69-year-old was found not guilty of one count of concealing a serious criminal offense committed against his late father, Frank Houston, following a trial last year.

The well-known former pastor has denied covering up his father’s sexual abuse of a young boy in Sydney in the 1970s by failing to tell police about the crime.

Mr Houston’s legal team returned to court on Friday after asking that his fees – which the court said were $1 million – be covered by the charge.

Magistrate Gareth Christofi rejected the application, saying he was “not persuaded that there were any exceptional circumstances relating to the prosecutor’s conduct”.

Mr Christofi told the court he was not satisfied that the proceedings against Mr Houston had been “initiated (by police) without reasonable cause”.

The motion by Mr. Houston’s legal team focused largely on whether the police could, or should have, presented a certain number of witnesses and evidence at trial.

At a costs hearing last year, Mr Houston’s lawyer, Phillip Boulten SC, argued the prosecution should never have brought charges against his high-profile client.

He argued the prosecution had ruled out the possibility that Mr Houston had followed the victim’s wishes by failing to report his father’s crimes to the police.

Mr Houston’s legal team successfully argued at trial last year that the preacher had a “reasonable excuse” for not reporting his father’s abuse of victim Brett Sengstock.

The seven-year-old was sexually assaulted by Frank Houston at the family home in Coogee, in Sydney’s east, while Houston was on tour in Australia more than 50 years ago.

The court heard Mr Sengstock told Brian Houston he did not want to make a statement to police and passed it on to the church several times.

Speaking outside court last year, Brian Houston said he wanted to “express his sadness” to Mr Sengstock and all of his late father’s victims.

“He (Frank Houston) was obviously a serial pedophile. A lot of people were hurt… but I’m not my father. I didn’t commit this crime,” he said.