Fathers' vendetta angers top judge

Peter Boshier

In a rare move, a top member of the judiciary has hit out at fathers' rights activists, saying noisy protests outside judges' private homes were a "personal vendetta".

Principal Family Court judge Peter Boshier said men's groups such as the Union of Fathers, which had been picketing two judges' homes in recent weeks, were going beyond acceptable democratic protest.

"It has all the hallmarks of personal vendetta by individuals who do not respect the legitimacy of the court," he said.

"Judges will not bow to that kind of pressure."

About 70 people held an "I am loyal to justice" demonstration outside the High Court in Auckland yesterday. Many of them had been involved in the Union of Fathers pickets.

Protest leader Vince Siemer, likened the High Court to "a country club run by Masons where most of the judges are either related to one another or run in the same circles".

"I have no doubt the vast majority of judges in impartial situations want to get the decision right, but where the judge is related to or good friends of the parties involved, there is an inherent bias."

Auckland District Law Society president Gary Gotlieb dismissed the statement as "secret-club nonsense".

"We're a small country, of course people know each other, but we put that to one side and find on the facts and the evidence."

Jon Neilson, a spokesman for police headquarters in Wellington, said if protesters were in a public place such as a public street, they were not necessarily breaking the law.

"Providing they are not causing a nuisance to passing traffic or pedestrians, there is no law against peaceful demonstration," he said.

Judicial communications adviser Neil Billington said disgruntled fathers had targeted two judges, one in Auckland and one in Hamilton, but would not name them.

A Hamilton police spokesman said police attended the protests last weekend but no action was taken.

"If they reached a threshold of disorderly behaviour then we would take action," he said. "But there was no violence, just placard-waving and shouting."

Union of Fathers spokesman Bevan Berg said the group would continue to protest and would target more judges if necessary, until a full Government inquiry was held into the Family Court. He accused Family Court judges and lawyers of "serious breaches of conduct".

"It's likely we will continue and will be outside the homes of Family Court judges and lawyers whose names appear within our circles with monotonous regularity," he said.

The protests were about the "misapplication" of the law and centred on the access of fathers to their children.

While Family Court proceedings were opened to media last year, in practice its proceedings still largely happened behind closed doors, Mr Berg said.

"A lot is happening in the process leading up to the hearing, all the media are getting is a whitewash."

The judges targeted were obviously uncomfortable, Mr Berg said. "I think anyone would be uncomfortable if there were protesters outside their house."

Judge Boshier called the protests "intimidatory" and said they were "clearly intended to bring unacceptable pressure on the court".

The distribution of confidential material by the Union of Fathers about Family Court cases should concern all New Zealanders. "The tactics of publicly distributing confidential case material that could lead to identification of the parties is very concerning," the judge said.

Mr Billington said he did not know whether any members of the judiciary were worried about their physical safety. "The principal judge has expressed a view about the matter as a protest issue, not at this stage as a security issue."