FEATURE

Britney Spears’ Conservatorship’ Is Over

More than a decade ago, Popular American pop singer Britney Spears entered into a conservatorship with her father, Jamie Spears, after suffering a very public breakdown. Under the conservatorship, Jamie reportedly had full control over Britney’s financial and medical affairs.

On November 12th, after more than 13 years and a global #FreeBritney social media movement, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Brenda Penny ended the controversial conservatorship, effective immediately. “The conservatorship of the person and estate of Britney Jean Spears is no longer required,” she said, according to the New York Times.

A conservatorship is when a judge appoints a responsible person or organization (called the “conservator”) to care for another adult (called the “conservatee”) who cannot care for themselves or manage their own finances, according to the California Courts website.

In Britney’s case, the terms of the conservatorship have not been made public, but in September 2020 she filed to open up parts of her conservatorship, according to TMZ, signaling that the pop star herself may be on board with the #FreeBritney movement.Britney Spears' Conservatorship Is Over

On June 23rd of this year, Britney spoke for herself in her conservatorship case for the first time ever. The court proceedings were live-streamed, giving the public a glimpse into the singer’s perspective and experience for the last 13 years. She spoke for 24 minutes, revealing mental health struggles, forced work, and overall loss of control of her life.

Brit’s fans have cited suspicion over the conservatorship and have been calling for it to end for years. The #FreeBritney movement is calling for legal intervention to help Britney regain control over her finances and life. Some financial documents obtained by Business Insider show that Britney spent $1.1 million on her legal and conservator fees in 2018.

Britney wasn’t present at today’s hearing. “This is a monumental day for Britney Spears,” Britney’s lawyer Mathew Rosengar said in a post-court press conference. “What’s next for Britney, and this is the first time this could be said for about a decade, is up to one person, Britney.”

Britney Spears' Conservatorship Is Over

But Britney’s legal battle continues: The judge also ruled that Britney’s current estate conservator would continue working to settle ongoing financial concerns related to the case.

Britney Spears tweeted a video from the celebration outside the courthouse, writing, “Good God I love my fans so much it’s crazy.”

John Zabel, who was appointed temporary co-conservator of Britney Spears’ estate in following her father’s suspension, will retain administrative powers to assist in the transfer process. He will be allowed to execute estate planning documents and the transfer of assets. No parties objected to his continued role.

A hearing scheduled for Jan. 18 will finalize the transfer of assets and any other pending financial items.

Britney Spears informally asked the court to terminate her conservatorship during rare testimony June 23, during which she described her situation as abusive and traumatizing. Rosengart filed her official request for termination at the end of October, a month after her father, James “Jamie” Spears, was suspended as conservator.

Jamie Spears first filed a petition to terminate the conservatorship in September, after Rosengart asked the court to remove him from Britney Spears’ case. Rosengart accused Jamie Spears of profiting off his daughter and mismanaging her finances through his role as conservator over the past 13 years.

Rosengart also accused Jamie Spears of reversing course and filing for termination, just weeks after telling the court he would resign following an orderly transition, to avoid a deposition.

“He wants to avoid being deposed under oath. He wants to avoid responding to extensive discovery,” Rosengart said during the September hearing. “And he wants to avoid his obligation as a fiduciary, once he is suspended, to turn over his files to not a permanent conservator of the estate, but a temporary, short-term conservator of the estate.”

Penny suspended Jamie Spears and replaced him with a temporary conservator, with the understanding that the singer’s attorney would file to terminate within the next 30 to 45 days.

Rosengart spoke outside the Stanley Mosk Courthouse following the testimony that raised public concern, including being denied the right to remove her intrauterine device in order to have more children and being forced into a $60,000-a-month treatment facility by her father.

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