Mayor vs mother-in-law

Stuff reports:

Lower Hutt Mayor Campbell Barry and his wife Laura are in a bitter property dispute with her mother.

Suppression orders originally made at the Barrys’ request ended on Tuesday after they abandoned an attempt to have them continue at the High Court at Wellington.

So the Mayor got a suppression order against his own mother-in-law!

Laura Barry’s mother, Debra Harris, said in online posts she had health issues and claimed her daughter, a lawyer, and mayor son-in-law, wanted her removed from the property that the Barrys had bought with she and her now-estranged husband in 2019, the Barrys told the court.

According to a March High Court judgment on the non publication application, the Barrys sought an order from the court under the Property Law Act that the property they own half-shares as tenants in common be divided on terms by which the Barrys acquire the Harris’ title at current market value. The substantive application is still to be decided.

So she said they were trying to remove her from a property she part-owned with them, and in fact this is what they are trying to do.

Campbell Barry, who was not seeking re-election, said politicians expected a certain level of personal attacks and insults but not the broadcasting of private family information. It was that private interest and not his political life that he wanted to protect, his lawyer had told the High Court.

This may be a bit simplistic, but wouldn’t the best way not to have your private family information made public would be not trying to evict your mother-in-law from a house she part-owns?