Lessons from the Britney Spears Conservatorship
Britney Spears, one of the world's biggest pop stars, was under conservatorship in California from 2008 to 2021. This arrangement gave her father, Jamie Spears, and a team of lawyers control over her personal and financial affairs. The conservatorship has been the subject of much controversy and speculation, with many fans and advocacy groups calling for it to be terminated.
The conservatorship was put in place after Britney Spears experienced a public breakdown, leading to hospitalization and the cancellation of her "Piece of Me" tour. At the time, she was deemed unable to manage her own affairs, and her father was appointed as her conservator.
Under the conservatorship, Jamie Spears and the team of lawyers have control over Britney Spears' finances, career decisions, and personal life. This includes everything from her medical care to her social media presence. She has not been allowed to make her own decisions about her life and career, leading many to question the fairness and legality of the arrangement.
The conservatorship has also been the subject of several legal battles, with Britney Spears' team of lawyers fighting to have the conservatorship terminated or modified. In June 2021, Britney Spears gave an emotional testimony to the court, calling the conservatorship "abusive" and revealing that she had been forced to perform against her will and had been denied basic freedoms.
Since then, the conservatorship has gained significant media attention and sparked a nationwide conversation about the rights of individuals under conservatorship. Many advocates are calling for reforms to conservatorship laws and increased protections for those under conservatorship.
As a result of the public outcry over Brittney’s conservatorship, California passed a law limiting a conservator’s from using the conservatee’s estate assets to pay for legal fees. As a result, a conservator can be help personally liable for legal costs associated with the conservatorship.
Brittney’s father was suspended as conservator in September, 2021 and the conservatorship was ended two months later. Brittney sued her father for mismanagement of her money and the parties finally settled. It’s rumored that her father agreed to pay back the $6 million he made from managing her financial estate over the 13 years he acted as her conservator. While $6 million sounds like a lot of money, Brittney is said to have a net worth of $60 million dollars and that money was managed and invested for her over those 13 years while she struggled with mental illness.
The question of whether Brittney’s father overstepped his bounds in controlling Brittney’s life under the legal conservatorship is unclear. It does not appear that there will be a public review of what actually happened. It does appear that Brittney’s father protected her assets as he was legally bound to do under the conservatorship laws of the state.
Brittney’s father made a critical error when he refused to step down as conservator once Brittney’s attorney petitioned the court for his removal. He fought those petitions with Brittney’s money, which he was legally allowed to do at the time. However, a conservator must take the conservatee’s wishes into account when managing their estate. Brittney’s father was ethically bound to step down as conservator once Brittney made her wishes known.
In conclusion, Britney Spears' conservatorship in California has been a controversial and heavily debated topic. While conservatorship can be a necessary legal arrangement in certain circumstances, the law is fraught with minefields for conservators and conservatees. The Spears cases shows us that conservators must be ever vigilant when following the laws and maintaining transparency in the process and they must abide by wishes of the conservatee whenever possible.
