Perhaps the #FreeBritney movement can start to rest easy. Britney Spears' father Jamie Spears has agreed to step down from her conservatorship after being wrapped up in the court-approved “temporary” legal guardianship for 13 years of her life. The pop sensation has been fighting against the situation these past few months with a petition for his suspension and it has now led her father to step down from the role.
Jamie Spears shared his response to the petition to the Los Angeles Superior Court on Thursday, sharing that he would no longer be part of her conservatorship. As Variety has reported, Britney Spears’ father ultimately decided to do so to stop the “public battle” with his daughter.
It's a big win for Britney Spears, but Jamie Spears’ attorney included a caveat to the future of the “Piece of Me” singer’s legal situation, sharing that they believed there was “no actual grounds for suspending or removing Mr. Spears as a conservator." As the filing stated:
And it is highly debatable whether a change in conservator at this time would be in Ms. Spears’ best interest Nevertheless, even as Mr. Spears is the unremitting target of unjustified attacks, he does not believe that a public battle with his daughter over his continuing service as her conservator would be in her best interests. So even though he must contest this unjustified Petition for his removal, Mr. Spears intends to work with the Court and his daughter’s new attorney to prepare for an orderly transition to a new conservator. As the Court has likely surmised, before Ms. Spears’ new attorney arrived, Mr. Spears had already been working on such a transition with Ms. Spears’ former court-appointed counsel, Sam Ingham.
UPDATE: Jamie Spears attorney clarified the status of Jamie Spears’ role in the conservatorship, per NBC News. The new statement is as follows (the rest of the original article follows afterwards):
Mr. Spears is willing to step down when the time is right, but the transition needs to be orderly and include a resolution of matters pending before the Court. When these matters are resolved, Mr. Spears will be in a position to step aside. But there are no urgent circumstances justifying Mr. Spears’ immediate suspension.
On the other hand, Britney Spears’ attorney Matthew Rosengard called the development “vindication for Britney.” He also shared some disappointment over the “shameful and reprehensible attacks on Ms. Spears and others" and spoke to the continued effort to investigate the 13-year situation. Back in July, Britney Spears publicly challenged he father’s legal guardianship by sharing her troubling experiences over the years, likening it to sex trafficking.
The conservatorship was put in place back in 2008 following the pop stars public breakdowns including that time she shaved her head and hit the car of paparazzi with an umbrella. Although a legal guardianship is usually granted to people with severe mental disabilities or dementia, Britney Spears’ conservatorship was an unusual court decision put into place according to law experts. It offered her father control of her estate and health and as Spears has alleged, she has since lost a say in her schedule, been forced to work seven days a week and even been denied access to her kids and other close people in her life.
The decision shows Britney Spears’ case is skewing in her favor, but Jamie Spears and his representation still wish for the pop star to have a conservatorship. Back in July, Britney’s lawyer filed a petition that shared hopes for Jason Rubin, a certified public accountant, to be her sole conservator instead. Spears’ finances reportedly are valued at over $50 million, which the singer believes was exploited for his own personal gain by Jamie Spears under her conservatorship.
The court decision sounds like a step in the right direction for the #FreeBritney movement and, more importantly, Britney Spears. We’ll keep you updated about any new developments about the conservatorship court battle.
