Judge Mary-Beth Sharp
| Judge Mary-Beth Sharp | |
|---|---|
| Mary-Beth SharpJudge Mary-Beth Sharp.jpg Mary-Beth Sharp | |
| Born | |
| 💼 Occupation | Lawyer |
| Known for | District Court judge |
| 👩 Spouse(s) | Robert Willis |
| 👶 Children | William Willis |
Mary-Beth Sharp (sometimes Mary-Elizabeth Willis) is a New Zealand lawyer and marriage celebrant. She is currently a judge sitting in the Auckland District Court. She came to public attention in September 2021 when her adult son was involved in a high-profile breach of New Zealand's COVID-19 lockdown.
Professional life
She has presided over a number of important cases in relation to the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993[1][2] Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act 2000[1] Fair Trading Act 1986[3][4]
Personal life
Sharp is married to Robert Willis. Together they were shareholders in Matawhio Sports Horses Ltd. They have a son William John Lawrence Willis, an equestrian.[5]
In 2002 Sharp was involved in a dispute with a fellow judge and coworker, Judge Lovell-Smith and her family over floodlights that Sharp put around an equestrian arena on her property.[6][7]
In 2013, Sharp was discharged without conviction but ordered to pay $500 in compensation in a case involving her son's dog biting another woman.[8][9]
Since 2017 Sharp has been a registered marriage celebrant.[10]
COVID lockdown incident
On 9 September 2021, Sharp's son William Willis and his partner Hannah Christine Rawnsley, 26, a lawyer,[11] drove from their Auckland residence to Hamilton, New Zealand, using Rawnsley's essential-worker documentation to get through the COVID-19 border as lawyers are considered an essential service, and then flew to a holiday home in Wānaka owned by Sharp and Robert Willis as a skiing holiday home.[12][13] The New Zealand Police were notified via an online reporting tool,[14] and caught up with the couple on Saturday 11th and said they would be summonsed to appear in court.[15] The couple were initially granted name suppression, but let it lapse, a decision that Sharp said she supported.[16][17] Sharp said in a statement that she did not know in advance of the actions, and did not condone them.[17] Sharp was removed as a shareholder of her son's equestrian company following this, and after questions from reporters she issued a statement through her lawyer that the questions were "highly defamatory."[18][19]
Further reading
- Website of Matawhio Sports Horses (archived)
- New Zealand companies register entry for Matawhio Sports Horses
- Website of Roddie Sim (archived)
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Commerce Commission – Mobile trader fined despite being liquidated". Comcom.govt.nz. 7 February 2018. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
- ↑ "Commerce Commission – Car dealership and owner fined for CGA misrepresentations". Comcom.govt.nz. 17 October 2018. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
- ↑ "Commerce Commission – $52,500 fine for selling non-protective safety jacket". Comcom.govt.nz. 15 May 2018. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
- ↑ "Commerce Commission – Toy importer fined for selling unsafe toys". Comcom.govt.nz. 12 February 2018. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
- ↑ "Equestrian: Maiden victory for comeback kid". NZ Herald. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
- ↑ "Squabbling judges stir polo alley". NZ Herald. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
- ↑ "Judge Jock: Judge Gets Off Hook, OAP Gets A Kicking and Courts Get Corporate". Nbr.co.nz. 10 May 2013. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
- ↑ "Judge and son face court over dog attack". NZ Herald. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
- ↑ "Judge must pay $500 to woman hurt by dog". NZ Herald. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
- ↑ "Marriage Celebrants for 2017 Notice No. 21 – 2017-go1362 – Te Kāhiti o Aotearoa". Gazette.govt.nz. 23 March 2017. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
- ↑ "Hannah Christine Rawnsley". New Zealand Law Society. 7 July 2020. Retrieved 24 October 2021. Text " Te Kāhui Ture o Aotearoa" ignored (help)
- ↑ "Wānaka lockdown breach couple named, apologise for 'irresponsible and inexcusable' actions". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
- ↑ "Official's son caught breaching lockdown rules granted suppression". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
- ↑ "Couple who flouted Auckland lockdown rules were dobbed in online". Rnz.co.nz. 12 September 2021. Retrieved 16 September 2021. Text " RNZ News " ignored (help)
- ↑ "Wānaka lockdown breach: Judge grants interim order on pre-charge basis". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
- ↑ "Name suppression on lockdown charges". Odt.co.nz. Retrieved 16 September 2021. Text " Otago Daily Times Online News" ignored (help)
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 "'Deeply sorry' - William Willis and Hannah Rawnsley named as Wanaka holidaymakers". NZ Herald. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
- ↑ "Judge sends legal warning after reporters ask questions about Wānaka lockdown breach". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
- ↑ "Judge exits horse business on day son revealed as Wānaka lockdown breaker". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
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