Judge rules pop star’s dad must end conservatorship
LOS ANGELES — In a major victory for Britney Spears, a judge on Wednesday suspended the singer’s father from the conservatorship that has controlled her life and money for 13 years, saying the arrangement “reflects a toxic environment.”
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Brenda Penny agreed with a petition from Spears and her attorney that James Spears needs to give up his role as conservator. The decision comes months after the pop star pleaded for her father’s removal in dramatic court hearings.
“The current situation is untenable,” Penny said after hearing arguments from both sides. “It reflects a toxic environment which requires the suspension of James Spears.”
James Spears sought the conservatorship in 2008 and had been its primary controller. He reversed course in recent weeks, asking the judge to end the conservatorship.
Britney Spears and her attorney, Mathew Rosengart, agreed that the conservatorship should end and said in court documents that James Spears’ removal was a necessary first step in “ending the Kafkaesque nightmare imposed upon her.”
Rosengart said in another filing this week that James Spears “crossed unfathomable lines” by engaging in illegal surveillance of her, including communications with her lawyer, as reported in “Controlling Britney Spears,” a documentary from The New York Times and the FX network.
James Spears has denied acting in anything but his daughter’s best interest. He has said in court papers that he does not know of any expert that concluded that his presence as conservator was harming his daughter.
James Spears in 2019 stepped aside as the so-called conservator of his daughter’s person, with control over her life decisions, maintaining only his role as conservator of her estate, with control over her finances.
Hours before the hearing, a major street outside the courthouse was closed to vehicles, allowing about 100 Spears supporters to march and host a rally. As the crowd grew, fans sang Spears hits, and speakers described abusive conservatorships that had affected their families.