A Los Angeles judge on Thursday overruled an objection from Britney Spears’ father that sought to end a joint co-conservatorship between himself and a financial company.
Judge Brenda Penny ordered that her father, Jamie Spears, and financial company Bessemer Trust work together on a budget and investment plan for the 39-year-old pop star. Last year, the judge appointed the company to the role but denied an attempt from Britney’s lawyers to remove Jamie from the conservatorship.
Britney’s court-appointed attorney, Sam Ingham, echoed his previous statements requesting her father’s removal but called it an entirely different issue for the court. “It’s no secret that my client does not want her father as her conservator,” Ingham said.
Jamie’s attorney, Vivian Thoreen, called the co-conservatorship between Jaime and Bessemer Trust “unclear and ambiguous by design.”
Ingham disputed this, saying the split roles were not ambiguous and meant to be equal. According to Ingham, it was in Britney’s legal rights to petition all financial duties be given to Bessemer as the financial authority. While some duties may be reduced, the judge agreed with his assertion that Bessemer and Jamie must work together.
The news comes as a New York Times documentary brought renewed attention to Spears’ legal battle to remove her father from the conservatorship.
In 2008, Jamie was granted the conservatorship after Britney purportedly struggled with mental health issues and was hospitalized. After she was released, a Los Angeles court made the conservatorship permanent, giving her father power over her finances and career.
Last year, Ingram said Britney “strongly opposed” her father’s position as the sole conservator of her estate and asked the court to limit his control.
Jamie’s legal team has argued that his conservatorship is working. Under his order, his legal team has said, Britney’s estate has gone from being in debt to having a valuation of more than $60 million.
The next hearing for the case is scheduled for March 17.
