Mischa Barton Suing Mother for Withholding Earnings and Exploiting Her Fame
Here's another reason not to work with family.
Mischa Barton is suing her mother, Nuala Barton, claiming that she stole money to purchase a $7.8 million, 8 bedroom/11 bath home in Beverly Hills that the actress' parents reside in, according to court papers. "Nuala currently refuses to provide Barton with any of the funds she earned (and continues to earn in the form of residual payments) for her acting, modeling and endorsement services," reads the complaint.
The former O.C. star's lawyer, Alex Weingarten, also spoke out against Nuala, calling her a "a greedy stage mother."
"From the outset, Nuala positioned herself to siphon her daughter’s hard-earned money by purportedly acting as her talent manager – a role for which Nuala had absolutely no experience or training," Weingarten told People in a statement.
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Mischa claims that her mother "had absolutely no experience or training" in talent management when she started working on her daughter's acting career. She also alleges that Nuala exclusively controlled her finances and only "doled out an 'allowance' to Barton at her sole discretion and on a sporadic basis."
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The complaint goes on to state that neither Mischa's mother nor her father Paul have had a job in over a decade independent of their daughter. The 29-year-old actress is also claiming that her mother has "exploited [Mischa]'s name to start a handbag line and a fashion boutique."
Mischa's own home went into foreclosure in 2014 after she was $100,000 delinquent on her mortgage. She is suing for damages and court costs.
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