Handbrake won''t stay up - intermittently

2002 LEv6 (3.0) automatic - Recently I noticed that the handbrake does not stay in the up positon every time.  With no pattern of predictability, it may sound no clicks and won''t stay on in the up position.  Other than this quirk, the rest of the car is faultless.  Has 70,000 mi since new.  Never fixed or changed anything except tires and a battery.
One observation is that the release button of the handbrake pops out very slowly, unlike  on any other car I have driven.  I have put a few drops of lubricant around that button to no effect.  The corner mechanic says he would have to open it up to see what part is bad and then change if necessary.  That seems quite a big fuzz, especially when I can still tolerate it for now.  Anybody has some idea or advice?

The system uses a spring loaded pin that rides on a cogged bracket located at the lower end of the handle.  When you pull up on the handle without pushing the button you should hear the pin ride on the cogs.  Pushing on the button releass the pin.

Most likely the push button or pin assy needs cleaning and a little lube.  You can remove the center console to access the cog assy.  This should not be too big of job.

Yeah, this is a pretty common issue on these cars . I never use mine so not a big deal, but I eventually will take it apart and fix, maybe I will do a write up on how to fix this problem