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Britney Spears Breaks Silence, Tells Court She Wants Her Dad Removed From Being Her Conservator Of 12 Years
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Britney Spears Breaks Silence, Tells Court She Wants Her Dad Removed From Being Her Conservator Of 12 Years

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Britney continues the legal battle to claim back the control of her life and fortune that she hasn’t had for the past twelve years. It all started back in 2008 after the pop singer went through several mental breakdowns and the court put her estate, financial and personal assets under the conservatorship of her father and a lawyer.

Today, though, Britney stands strong and is no longer willing to give her dad the power to control her life. She has now asked a California court to end her father’s role as a conservator and according to the court papers, her lawyer Samuel D Ingham III said “Britney is strongly opposed to James continuing as sole conservator of her estate.” Instead, she prefers a “qualified corporate fiduciary” to manage the business affairs of her estate.

Many believe the star has been controlled and manipulated, which has fueled the #FreeBritney movement. More than 256K people have signed a petition to let Britney have her own lawyer, and the court hearing is set to continue on August 19.

On Tuesday, Britney Spears turned to court to keep her father from reasserting sole control over her life

Image credits: britneyspears

The court gave Britney’s dad power over her major life decisions from 2008 until 2019, but she asked not to return him to the role of conservator of her person

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Image credits: britneyspears

The court document says that “Britney is strongly opposed to James’ return as conservator of her person”

Image credits: britneyspears

To find out more about the #FreeBritney movement, Bored Panda spoke to one of Britney’s avid supporters and active member of the movement, Bruno. Bruno proudly calls himself a part of #BritneyArmy and he has been actively advocating for the pop star’s right to her life and fortune on social media.

“The #FreeBritney movement started back in 2008 when some fans started speculating Britney was trying to get in touch with lawyers saying she was threatened by her father who would tell her he would take her kids away,” Bruno said. At that time, however, many didn’t see enough proof to believe the allegations.

James Spears’s role of the conservatorship even gave him power over Britney’s personal life, including her teenage sons

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Image credits: britneyspears

The court documents also revealed that the pop star is not likely to perform again in the near future

Image credits: britneyspears

Britney has almost never spoken about the conservatorship matters in public, but documents gave a rare glimpse of Britney Spears’ own wishes in her life, which has been under control for the past 12 years

Image credits: britneyspears

It all changed back in March 2019 when “a paralegal claiming to work in an office that was dealing with her conservatorship left a voicemail on the fan podcast ‘britneysgram.’”

In this voicemail, Bruno continued, “the paralegal claimed Britney wasn’t being seen out anymore because they had locked her up against her will in a mental health facility since January, which is something the conservator is not allowed to do, nor could the facility accept an adult against their will.”

It caused a stir on social media, but many people still remained skeptical as to whether such serious allegations were true.

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However, Bruno said that “the fact Britney Spears herself is now asking the court to remove her father completely from the conservatorship is everything I needed to know from Britney to keep fighting by her side.”

This comes months after the fans showed their concerns over Britney’s health and safety

Image credits: britneyspears

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At this point, Bruno said he’s trying not to speculate on anything, and whether the involved parties have committed is not up to him and the #FreeBritney supporters, but to the court of California. “I hope a full investigation of all the parties involved takes place and if there was crime or abuse, they hold them responsible,” he concluded.

More people expressed their concerns in the comments

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Recently, this person took it upon themself to try to explain how her dad has been controlling her life all this time

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Image credits: X17onlineVideo

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The late 2000s were a difficult time for Britney. She was spotted driving her SUV with her son Sean on her lap and not strapped in a car seat. She shaved her head and was seen hitting a photographer’s car with an umbrella. She also went through a divorce and, after refusing to relinquish custody of her children, locked herself in a room with her child only to be taken out on a stretcher and hospitalized for appearing to be under the influence of an unknown substance. In 2008, Britney made several trips to rehab and was committed to a psychiatric hospital at least two times.

Eventually, her father, Jamie Spears was granted oversight of her estate and health, which includes everything from negotiating business opportunities to restricting visitors, while attorney Andrew Wallet was assigned to help manage the singer’s assets.

Britney Spears’ financial documents revealed that as of 2018, she had a net worth of $59 million. That year, she spent $400,000 on living expenses and $66,000 on household supplies. She also spent $1.1 million on her legal and conservator fees that year, and her father reportedly took $128,000 of that.

Britney’s fans thought a sign that not everything was going well was when attorney Andrew Wallet stepped down as the co-conservator. “Conservatorship is engaged in numerous ongoing business activities requiring immediate attention,” he wrote in court filings, adding that it would be in Britney’s best interest if his resignation were accepted swiftly. He didn’t provide a specific reason for his resignation.

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According to Wallet, the singer would have suffered “substantial detriment, irreparable harm, and immediate danger” if he didn’t step down.

Law experts, however, point out that while conservatorships can be corrupted, there is probably good reason it still stands. “The fact that she’s been under conservatorship for a dozen years should tell you something about the state of her mental impairment and her vulnerability,” lawyer Adam Streisand, who specializes in high-profile wealth disputes told Los Angeles Times. “The courts will do everything they can to ensure that a person is not conserved unless they really, really need to be.”

Here’s what people had to say about the matter

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Liucija Adomaite

Liucija Adomaite

Writer, Community member

Read more ยป

Liucija Adomaite is a creative mind with years of experience in copywriting. She has a dynamic set of experiences from advertising, academia, and journalism. This time, she has set out on a journey to investigate the ways in which we communicate ideas on a large scale. Her current mission is to find a magic formula for how to make ideas, news, and other such things spread like a virus.

Read less ยป
Liucija Adomaite

Liucija Adomaite

Writer, Community member

Liucija Adomaite is a creative mind with years of experience in copywriting. She has a dynamic set of experiences from advertising, academia, and journalism. This time, she has set out on a journey to investigate the ways in which we communicate ideas on a large scale. Her current mission is to find a magic formula for how to make ideas, news, and other such things spread like a virus.

Ilona Baliลซnaitฤ—

Ilona Baliลซnaitฤ—

Author, BoredPanda staff

Read more ยป

I'm a Visual Editor at Bored Panda since 2017. I've searched through a multitude of images to create over 2000 diverse posts on a wide range of topics. I love memes, funny, and cute stuff, but I'm also into social issues topics. Despite my background in communication, my heart belongs to visual media, especially photography. When I'm not at my desk, you're likely to find me in the streets with my camera, checking out cool exhibitions, watching a movie at the cinema or just chilling with a coffee in a cozy place

Read less ยป

Ilona Baliลซnaitฤ—

Ilona Baliลซnaitฤ—

Author, BoredPanda staff

I'm a Visual Editor at Bored Panda since 2017. I've searched through a multitude of images to create over 2000 diverse posts on a wide range of topics. I love memes, funny, and cute stuff, but I'm also into social issues topics. Despite my background in communication, my heart belongs to visual media, especially photography. When I'm not at my desk, you're likely to find me in the streets with my camera, checking out cool exhibitions, watching a movie at the cinema or just chilling with a coffee in a cozy place

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Bill
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

He gave his other daughter Jamie Lynn to that Nickelodeon executive at 16. Why would any judge give Conservership to someone like that.

Kyana Winter
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yeah Jamie Lynn worked for Dan Schneider who assaulted young girls during his time working for Nickelodean. Her show Zoey 101 was canceled around the time she got pregnant at 16, and I have seen theories going around that Schneider had raped her and was the baby daddy of her daughter, and they do have a bit of a striking resemblance. Same eyes, nose, and mouth.

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Bobbilee
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The judge can even require her to see a psychiatrist weekly or monthly or whatever if he kills the conservatorship.

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Bill
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

He gave his other daughter Jamie Lynn to that Nickelodeon executive at 16. Why would any judge give Conservership to someone like that.

Kyana Winter
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yeah Jamie Lynn worked for Dan Schneider who assaulted young girls during his time working for Nickelodean. Her show Zoey 101 was canceled around the time she got pregnant at 16, and I have seen theories going around that Schneider had raped her and was the baby daddy of her daughter, and they do have a bit of a striking resemblance. Same eyes, nose, and mouth.

Load More Replies...
Bobbilee
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The judge can even require her to see a psychiatrist weekly or monthly or whatever if he kills the conservatorship.

Load More Comments
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