A B.C. man accused of drinking and driving will get a second chance in court because of the "hostile and dismissive" attitude of the judge in his original trial.

Gary Lynn Snider was charged with refusing to provide a breath sample after he was pulled over in Courtenay in March 2007. Snider admitted that he had been drinking, but turned his head away when the police officer tried to make him take a Breathalyzer.

He was convicted after a two-day provincial court trial in 2008 by Judge Peter Doherty, who rejected Snider's argument that the officer had violated his right to a lawyer.

Snider was granted a new trial in B.C. Supreme Court Tuesday, after arguing in an appeal that the judge was rude and biased.

"From the opening words of the judge to me until the end of the trial, I did not feel that the trial judge acted in an impartial manner. He appeared hostile to the defence and did not appear to be interested in anything [defence lawyer Robert] Claus had to say," Snider wrote.

He said that Doherty didn't seem to be paying attention during defence cross-examination, but instead was reading notes he had taken during the prosecutors' evidence.

"At one point during Mr. Claus' cross examination, he appeared to be twiddling his thumbs and did not ever appear to be the least interested in the evidence obtained in the cross examination," Snider wrote.

The judge often interrupted the defence lawyer while he questioned witnesses and even told one witness to sit down and get comfortable during cross-examination, "if you're finding this too long."

Snider said that he talked to other lawyers who were in the courtroom during the trial, and they agreed that Doherty was rude and wasn't paying attention.

"The lawyers appeared to be appalled by the behaviour of the trial judge," Snider wrote.

Crown lawyers did not argue against Snider's claim that the judge was rude and uncivil.

B.C. Supreme Court Justice John Harvey ruled that Doherty's "hostile and, at times, sarcastic manner" suggested that he did not give Snider a fair trial.

"In these circumstances, justice was not undoubtedly seen to be done," Harvey wrote.

A new trial date has yet to be scheduled.