Britney Spears’ father files to end star’s conservatorship after 13 years
Jamie Spears has filed a legal petition to end a controversial conservatorship which has controlled the affairs of his daughter for the last 13 years.
Legal documents submitted to Los Angeles Superior Court by Spears on Tuesday state that his daughter Britney “is entitled” to have a judge “seriously consider” whether the arrangement is required.
The documents add that Britney Spears’ circumstances have changed “to such an extent that grounds for establishment of a conservatorship may no longer exist”.
“She wants to be able to make decisions regarding her own medical care, deciding when, where and how often to get therapy. She wants to control the money she has made from her career and spend it without supervision or oversight,” the legal documents state.
In July the singer told a court she wanted her father charged with ‘conservatorship abuse’. File pic
“She wants to be able to get married and have a baby, if she so chooses. In short, she wants to live her life as she chooses without the constraints of a conservator or court proceeding.”
And Jodi Montgomery, the care-giver who oversees the star’s personal affairs, should also be discharged from her role, Mr Spears said.
Britney Spears, 39, has attempted to remove her father as the overseer of her $60 million estate twice in the last two years, even refusing to perform while he retains control.
In July, the singer told Judge Brenda Penny that it was her top priority that Mr Spears, 69, be removed and charged with “conservatorship abuse”.
She also accused her father, who is a recovering alcoholic, of ruining her life and alleged that he “loved” to hear her in pain while he exerted his power over her.
At the height of her fame, Spears was one of the world’s biggest pop star. She is famous for hits including Baby One More Time, Oops!… I Did It Again, I’m A Slave 4 U, Toxic and Womanizer, although she has not performed since 2018.
She has been under the control of the conservatorship – usually reserved for the old and infirm – since 2008, when it was put in place as a temporary measure following her high-profile reported breakdown.
She told a court in June the “abusive” legal arrangement was stopping her from getting married and having a baby and that it was her “wish and dream” for it to end.
She alleged that she was being compelled to take certain medications and to use an intrauterine device for birth control against her will.
The #FreeBritney movement has brought worldwide attention to the star’s case. Pic: AP
In a court filing in August, Mr Spears said he was willing to step back as the conservator of her finances, but offered no timetable.
Spears’ attorney Mathew Rosengart, a high-powered Hollywood lawyer, then accused Jamie of attempting to “extort” his daughter, alleging he asked for about $2 million (£1.45 million) in payments to his legal team and former business manager Tri Star.
A petition to remove Mr Spears from his role was to be heard at the next hearing in the case on 29 September. Ms Penny will now need to approve the move to terminate the arrangement for good.
Mr Spears’ filing represents a significant win for the #FreeBritney movement which has gathered momentum in recent months.
His lawyers have sought to defend him from claims he wanted to keep the arrangement in place for his benefit.
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The filing adds: “As Mr Spears has said again and again, all he wants is what is best for his daughter.
“If Ms Spears wants to terminate the conservatorship and believes that she can handle her own life, Mr Spears believes that she should get that chance.”
Mr Spears gave up his control over his daughter’s life decisions in 2019, handing the role to court-appointed Ms Montgomery, but he kept control of her finances.
In July, Spears was allowed to hire Mr Rosengart as her lawyer, replacing Samuel Ingham, the man appointed by the court in 2008. He has promised to help her end the conservatorship for good.
Donald Trump has said he is considering “taking away” the US citizenship of actress and comedian Rosie O’Donnell, despite a Supreme Court ruling that expressly prohibits a government from doing so.
In a post on Truth Social on Saturday, the US president said: “Because of the fact that Rosie O’Donnell is not in the best interests of our Great Country, I am giving serious consideration to taking away her Citizenship.”
He also labelled O’Donnell, who has moved to Ireland, as a “threat to humanity” and said she should “remain in the wonderful country of Ireland, if they want her”.
O’Donnell responded on Instagram by posting a photograph of Mr Trump with Jeffrey Epstein.
“You are everything that is wrong with America and I’m everything you hate about what’s still right with it,” she wrote in the caption.
“I’m not yours to silence. I never was.”
Rosie O’Donnell moved to Ireland after Donald Trump secured a second term. Pic: AP
O’Donnell moved to Ireland with her 12-year-old son in January after Mr Trump had secured a second term.
She has said she’s in the process of obtaining Irish citizenship based on family lineage and that she would only return to the US “when it is safe for all citizens to have equal rights there in America”.
O’Donnell and the US president have criticised each other publicly for years, in an often-bitter back-and-forth that predates Mr Trump’s move into politics.
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This is just the latest threat by the president to revoke the citizenship of someone he has disagreed with, most recently his former ally Elon Musk.
But the two situations are different as while Musk was born in South Africa, O’Donnell was born in the US and has a constitutional right to American citizenship.
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Amanda Frost, a law professor at the University of Virginia School of Law, said the Supreme Court ruled in a 1967 case that the fourteenth amendment of the constitution prevents the government from taking away citizenship.
“The president has no authority to take away the citizenship of a native-born US citizen,” he added.
“In short, we are nation founded on the principle that the people choose the government; the government cannot choose the people.”
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