Originally published 2021-06-27.
On 23 June 2021, Britney Spears addressed a Los Angeles court publicly for the first time about the conservatorship that had controlled her finances and much of her personal life since 2008. In a statement of roughly 24 minutes to Judge Brenda Penny, she called the arrangement abusive, said she had been made to work and prevented from marrying or having another child, and asked for it to end. Less than five months later, on 12 November 2021, the judge terminated it.
What Britney Spears told the court
Speaking in an open session, Spears described the conservatorship in stark terms. “I truly believe this conservatorship is abusive,” she said. Among the points she raised:
- She said she had an IUD (a contraceptive device) and was not allowed to see a doctor to have it removed, even though she wanted to marry her boyfriend and have a baby.
- She said she had been made to tour and perform against her wishes and had been medicated with lithium without her consent.
- She compared a 2019 stay in a treatment facility to sex trafficking, describing having her phone, cards and passport taken away.
- She asked to choose her own lawyer and for the arrangement to end without her having to undergo further evaluation.
The hearing itself was notable. Because Spears spoke in an open session, the public heard her account directly for the first time, rather than through lawyers, leaked filings or fan speculation.
These were her statements in court; they were not findings by the judge. Several people named disputed parts of her account.
What a conservatorship is, and how hers began
In California, a conservatorship is a court arrangement in which a judge appoints someone to manage the affairs of an adult considered unable to do so. A “conservator of the person” oversees daily life and health care, while a “conservator of the estate” controls money and contracts.
Spears’s case began on 1 February 2008, after a very public mental health crisis, when a court approved a temporary conservatorship at her father Jamie Spears’s request. It was made permanent on 28 October 2008. Jamie Spears served as conservator of her estate from then until 2021, sharing that role with lawyer Andrew Wallet until Wallet resigned in 2019. He was also conservator of her person until 2019, when care manager Jodi Montgomery took over that role temporarily. Earlier reports that her father alone held total control for 13 years simplify a more complicated arrangement.
Conservatorships are usually used for elderly people with dementia or adults with severe disabilities. Spears’s case was unusual because during those same years she released albums, judged a television talent show and headlined a long Las Vegas residency, earning large sums while legally unable to control them. Critics asked how someone deemed unable to manage her own affairs could carry such a workload.
Her father’s response
Jamie Spears denied wrongdoing. Through his lawyer, Vivian Thoreen, he said he had always acted in his daughter’s best interests and pointed to the finances. His statement argued that he had taken an estate that was in debt and facing lawsuits and grown it to more than $60 million. “Mr Spears has performed his job well,” the statement said.
Others connected to the case also pushed back. Montgomery’s lawyer said she had only signed routine paperwork, and the wealth firm Bessemer Trust, which had been approved to co-manage the estate, asked to withdraw the day after the hearing, citing Britney’s testimony.
#FreeBritney and the documentary that changed opinion
Public pressure had been building long before June 2021. Fans organised the first #FreeBritney rally outside West Hollywood City Hall in 2019, and the movement surged again in 2020. In February 2021 The New York Times released the documentary Framing Britney Spears, which brought the case to a mainstream audience and prompted many people to re-examine how the media had treated the singer in the 2000s.
Some fans had also combed through her social media posts for hidden signals, a habit that drew criticism for being speculative. The documentary’s strength was different: it relied on court records and interviews, and it showed how few avenues a conservatee has to challenge the people appointed over them.
Her testimony confirmed, in her own words, many of the concerns campaigners had raised, and support poured in from fans, fellow musicians and politicians across the spectrum.
How the conservatorship ended
Events moved quickly after the hearing:
- 14 July 2021: Judge Penny allowed Spears to choose her own lawyer. She hired former federal prosecutor Mathew Rosengart.
- 29 September 2021: Jamie Spears was suspended as conservator of the estate and replaced by an accountant, John Zabel. The judge called the situation “not tenable.”
- 12 November 2021: The conservatorship was terminated, with no objections, and her assets were moved into a trust.
Ending the arrangement was not a legal finding on each of her allegations, and disputes between Spears and her father over fees and conduct continued for years afterwards.
Why the case still matters
The case led to a wider debate about how conservatorships are granted and reviewed. In September 2021 Governor Gavin Newsom signed California legislation, informally called the #FreeBritney bill, intended to give people under conservatorship more say, including over the choice of their lawyer, and to strengthen oversight of conservators.
For families considering such arrangements, the lesson most experts draw is to look first at less restrictive options, such as powers of attorney or supported decision-making, and to make sure any conservatorship is reviewed regularly. Anyone facing these decisions should speak to an elder-law or disability-rights lawyer, and to a doctor about the person’s health needs.
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