Trying to keep things on the down low. Kevin Federline attempted to pursue his child support battle with ex Britney Spears without heading to the courthouse, according to celebrity divorce attorney Mark Vincent Kaplan.
“Kevin tried to settle this amicably without getting the court involved,” Kaplan tells Us Weekly. “Jamie Spears didn’t want to go that route, and now will have to deal with the court intervention, which again, we tried to avoid.”
Spears’ attorney, Laura Wassar, “promised Jamie Spears he would never have to pay KFed’s lawyer any attorney’s fees,” a source tells Us. However, in the closed hearing on Friday, August 3, a “judge ordered Britney’s camp” to pay legal fees owed thus far.”
Kaplan tells Us that he is “pleased with the temporary fee award.”
“The judge made several key rulings that we are very, very happy with,” Kaplan said. “First and foremost, a special referee was appointed that will oversee the financial discovery going forward. The judge in family court also referred us to a private retired judge to determine if a resolution can be made without having to go through the carnage and litigation of a trial.“
He continued, “What this means going forward is that there won’t be anymore delays. If there is an objection made at a deposition, it will be immediately ruled on by the retired judge, so there won’t be anymore of these lengthy delays.”
An insider tells Us that Jamie was “going to be hopping mad” about the ruling.
Us Weekly exclusively revealed in early June that Spears, 36, was served a subpoena for a deposition to “discuss her personal finances”
A source told Us at the time that Wassar “accepted the subpoena on Britney’s behalf,” adding that the “subpoena also included financial discovery, including Britney’s most recent tax returns, and a completed income and expense declaration.”
In May, the 40-year-old Celebrity Fit Club alum filed to increase child support payments from Spears with whom he shares two sons, Sean Preston, 12, and Jayden James, 11.
The former couple were married from 2004 to 2007.
