Britney Spears’s dad, Jamie Spears, will continue to be her conservator after a court hearing with her mom, Lynne Spears, on Wednesday, September 18, Us Weekly can confirm.
The hearing, which Britney, 37, didn’t attend, was to reevaluate Jamie’s status as her conservator, a role he’s had since 2008. Though Jamie stepped down as Britney’s conservator earlier this month and was replaced by the “Toxic” singer’s current care manager, Jodi Montgomery, the 67-year-old was expected to resume his duties when Montgomery’s temporary conservatorship ends in January 2020.
At the hearing, Jamie stood in front of the judge with his attorneys and Montgomery. On the other side of the room was Lynne, 64, who was accompanied by her and Britney’s lawyer, Sam Ingham. The judge granted a motion to seal transcripts and documents from the hearing because they may contain proprietary information and sensitive medical and family details about Britney, her parents and her two sons with ex-husband Kevin Federline. According to the court documents obtained by Us, Jamie was ordered to send payments to Montgomery, which signals that he’s still in charge of Britney’s finances.
A source tells Us exclusively that Britney wanted her father to be removed “immediately” as the conservator of her estate, which is valued at more than $100 million. Lynne, who doesn’t want the job, “feels it’s in Britney’s best interests” if the conservator is a “neutral third party,” according to the insider.
“Jamie isn’t opposed to being removed as conservator of Britney as the person, but will fight any attempt to remove him as conservator of her estate,” a second source tells Us. “Britney’s finances were in shambles before Jamie took over. She was approaching bankruptcy in 2007.”
Earlier this month, Jamie asked a judge to “temporarily relinquish the powers of conservatorship,” according to court documents obtained by Us. Jamie, who was hospitalized in November 2018 after suffering a ruptured colon, cited “personal health reasons” for his decision.
As temporary conservator, Montgomery will have the same powers granted to Jamie, which include access to the Grammy winner’s medical records and the ability to limit and restrict visitors for her. Montgomery will also be able to prosecute restraining orders on Britney’s behalf, as well as retain caretakers and security guards on a “24 hour/7 day basis.”
In August, Federline, 41, was granted a restraining order against Britney’s father on behalf of their sons after an alleged altercation between Jamie and the former couple’s 13-year-old, Sean Preston. The restraining order, which was granted with no opposition from Jamie, prohibits the grandfather from coming near Sean Preston and his brother, Jayden James, 12, for three years. The conditions also state that an adult that Federline approves of, who cannot be Jamie, must be present when the boys are with their mother.
“Britney had the boys at Jamie’s condo on the evening of August 24. Jamie and Sean Preston got into an argument. Sean Preston felt unsafe and locked himself into a room. Jamie broke into the room and shook Sean Preston,” a source told Us in August about the incident that prompted Federline to report Jamie’s behavior to the police and file the restraining order.
Ventura County District Attorney Gregory D. Totten confirmed in a news release on Tuesday, September 17, that “criminal charges will not be filed” against Jamie after Federline filed a police report over the incident with Preston.
“The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office investigated allegations involving child abuse by Mr. Spears,” the statement continued. “After reviewing the evidence, there is insufficient proof that a criminal offense was committed by Mr. Spears.”
A third source close to Britney tells Us that the “Womanizer” singer was interested to learn what the investigation found at the hearing.
“She wants to know what is in the investigator’s report,” the insider says. “Based on conversations with all of the lawyers involved, and interviews done with Britney, Lynne and others in her life … the report isn’t expected to be favorable to Jamie, at all.”
Federline and Britney, who split in 2007 after two years of marriage, changed their child custody agreement earlier this month. Under the new arrangement, the DJ will have custody of Preston and Jayden 70 percent of the time, while the “Everytime” songstress will get 30 percent custodial rights. The two previously had a 50-50 agreement, which had been in place since their divorce.
According to the first source, the “I’m a Slave 4 U” hitmaker blames her father for the new custody agreement.
“The fact is, Jamie caused Britney to lose even more custodial time with the boys because of the altercation,” the insider says.
The second source tells Us that Jamie is “extremely remorseful” over the incident and wants nothing but the best for his daughter.
“Past issues are being brought up. The entire family is fighting,” the insider says. “Instead of coming together to help Britney, which is all Jamie has ever done, they are arguing. Jamie admits that he has been less than perfect, and acknowledges he lost his temper with Pres and is extremely remorseful about it.”
With reporting by Jennifer Heger and Marjorie Hernandez
