The Superior Court of Los Angeles (USA) on Thursday rejected a request from Britney Spears’ father, Jamie, who wanted full control over the singer’s legal custody, which will be shared with an investment fund of her choice.
Today’s decision marked a new chapter in the legal battle Spears’s lawyers waged with her father to ease custody with which he has overseen all aspects of his daughter’s public life since 2008. The next hearings will be on March 17 and April 27.
The case has become more relevant to the media after The New York Times newspaper last week released the documentary “Framing Britney Spears,” which assesses the artist’s rise and fall with a disturbing portrayal of her fame and constant public scrutiny of the topics covered. were subdued.
Although Jamie continues as legal guardian, he will have to continue to share all his decisions with the private Bessemer Trust fund, including those regarding finances, an extreme opposed by the father’s lawyers and rejected by Judge Brenda Penny.
This decision is closer to the likes of Spears, who this summer expressed her “strong opposition” to her father who remained in full control of her life.
“It’s no secret that my client doesn’t want his father to be a co-tutor, but we recognize it’s a separate issue,” said the singer’s lawyer, Samuel Ingham.
Ingham reiterated that he will attempt to revoke the father’s powers in future sessions, but this Thursday, which lasted just an hour, was summed up in the decision who was in control of the successful artist’s finances.
FREEDOM REQUESTS FOR BRITNEY SPEARS
At present, the significance of this legal safeguard has not been debated in the courts, which have lasted 12 years with conditions usually reserved for people with Alzheimer’s disease or severe cognitive impairment.
Spears, now 39, agreed that her father became her legal guardian in 2008, a period marked by erratic behavior in which she was admitted to a mental hospital and lost custody of her children.
Later, the artist was rehabilitated, released new albums, and played in one of the most watched shows in Las Vegas, but custody was never revoked.
The “Toxic” singer has said that “she won’t be performing again” until her father leaves that legal figure, challenged by thousands of Spears fans who periodically demonstrate with the slogan “#FreeBritney” (Freedom for Britney).