Pop princess Britney Spears says her dad kept her conservatorship ‘hidden’ from the public for years, and now she’s calling for a change. According to the new court documents obtained by Us Weekly, the 38-year-old “Toxic” singer is aiming to open up her case to the public, effectively going against father Jamie Spear’s wishes to keep the case sealed.
Court hearings for Britney Spears’ conservatorship have been closed to members of the public in the past. The only individuals allowed to attend these hearings were attorneys, Britney herself, Jamie, 68, her mother, her temporary conservator and “care manager,” Jodi Montgomery, and Britney’s sister, Jamie Lynn Spears (who was also recently named trustee of her estate). But the Las Vegas star is reportedly “opposed” to keeping matters sealed—she wants her fans, many of whom have rallied behind the #FreeBritney movement, to have the option attend her hearings.
“Britney herself is vehemently opposed to this effort by her father to keep her legal struggle hidden away in the closet as a family secret,” reads a filing by Britney’s attorney, Samuel D. Ingham III. Us adds that Ingham’s document also notes that “there are no medical issues at all in a conservatorship of the estate, nor are her children [Preston, 14, and Jayden, 13] involved in any way.” Britney shares her two sons with Kevin Federline, 42, her former husband and backup dancer. The pair divorced in July 2007, after which point Federline was granted sole custody of their children in October of that year.
Britney, who has been under a conservatorship since 2008, has also become the subject of concern for many fans who believe that her conservators are controlling her life beyond reason. Ingham also revealed to Page Six on August 1 that their calls to #FreeBritney are far from a “joke,” as her father has suggested in the past. “Far from being a conspiracy theory or a ‘joke’ as James reportedly told the media, in large part this scrutiny [on social media] is a reasonable and even predictable result of James’ aggressive use of the sealing procedure over the years to minimize the amount of meaningful information made available to the public,” Britney’s attorney told the outlet. “Whatever merits his strategy might have had years ago when Britney was trying to restart her career, at this point in her life when she is trying to regain some measure of personal autonomy, Britney welcomes and appreciates the informed support of her many fans.”
Britney’s conservatorship is currently managed by her father, who issued a request to the California court to reinstate himself as co-conservator along with Britney’s former attorney, Andrew Wallet, in August following the singer’s request to permanently remove him from her case. Jamie had previously stepped down as a conservator following a health emergency, leaving care manager Montgomery in his place.
Following his temporary absence, Britney issued court documents on August 17 stating she would be “strongly opposed” to having him resume his position after Montgomery’s role is set to expire in February 2020. For now, Jamie’s request was granted, but the singer is expected to fight it in a new court hearing on September 16, 2020.