County Hall spent more than £30,000 on lawyers fighting a man's £5,500 claim for damages after his home was flooded.
Iain Hunton, who lives in Sprowston Road, Norwich, says he has been left "destroyed" by the dispute, which began a decade ago.
He has branded Norfolk County Council's determination to avoid agreeing to a remediation sum as a "cruel" campaign against him which has "wasted taxpayers' money".
But County Hall, which went on to win the case in December last year, said the legal tussle was justified to avoid setting a precedent and that some of the costs incurred went towards legal advice provided to Mr Hunton.
It comes after the authority's spending on legal challenges has come under the spotlight, with critics saying their lawyers are being given a "blank cheque" to fight against claims.
FLOOD WOES
Mr Hunton's tussle with NCC followed several flooding incidents between 2012 and 2014 where his home was damaged by rainwater flowing from blocked drains on the road outside into his property.
It is believed poor drainage measures on Sprowston Road contributed to the problems.
The incident has caused continued issues with rising damp and rotting floorboards.
Following complaints raised by Mr Hunton, which were supported by then Norwich North MP Chloe Smith, highways teams carried out a series of improvements to Sprowston Road between 2014 and 2018.
This included clearing drains and adding gutters, gullies and soak-a-ways and resurfacing the road.
At this time, work was delegated to Norwich City Council, who employed sub-contractors to complete the scheme.
Since 2019, County Hall has been responsible for all highway work, after it terminated its agreement with Norwich City Council.
COURT BATTLE
The 63-year-old decided to take NCC to the small claims court in 2020, believing the damage caused to his home - estimated to be in the region of £10,000 - is the fault of the council.
He later reduced his claim to half of that figure.
Amid the proceedings, experts at housing firm Watsons conducted three surveys that found the flooding damage was likely caused by issues with drainage on the road, putting the blame on NCC for this.
Mr Hunton said at one hearing, a judge urged NCC to settle his £5,500 claim on the basis of the surveyor's report.
But NCC refuted this and said there was no evidence that they were liable for the damages.
Ultimately, the authority managed to win the case.
A spokesman for Norfolk County Council said: “We have consistently asked Mr Hunton to demonstrate what liability Norfolk County Council has for the damages to his property.
“We will continue to investigate all liability claims brought against the county council: we cannot set the precedent that just because a claim is of low value, the claimant isn’t required to meet a basic standard of proof in order to receive taxpayers’ money.
"Any substantiated, evidenced claims will of course be fully considered and compensation paid where liability is proven.”
'I'M DESTROYED'
Mr Hunton claims the case was won on a "technicality" due to subcontractors not being allowed to be included in the claim and the delays making it 'time-barred' - being outside the period of limitation.
He believes lawyers stalled proceedings for 36 months trying to find key paperwork and a "star witness".
"They played a game with me," he said. "The whole thing has destroyed me and I am still left with damage to my home I can't afford.
"The judge urged them time and time again to think of the court costs and enter mediation but they declined.
"I feel absolutely gutted."
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