Kevin Federline‘s lawyer claims Britney Spears‘ sons Sean Preston, 16, and Jayden, 15, miss their grandfather, Jamie Spears.
“That’s their grandfather. Of course they do,” Mark Vincent Kaplan told a photographer via TMZ on Monday, August 8. “But you know, the restraining order is going to expire on its own terms fairly soon and they’ll be able to be reunited.”
The restraining order stems from an August 2019 incident. Multiple sources exclusively told Us Weekly at the time that police responded to Jamie’s California condo after he got into an argument with his grandson Sean Preston and “shook” the then-13-year-old.
Federline, 44, subsequently obtained a restraining order against Jamie that prohibited his former father-in-law from coming near both of the children. No child abuse charges were made against Jamie, but days after the incident, the Grammy winner and Federline formalized a new custody agreement, with him getting their sons 70 percent of the time and her having them the other 30 percent. (They previously had a 50-50 custody arrangement.)
However, the former backup dancer now is singing Jamie’s praises. “I saw this man that really cared, and really cares about his family and wanting everything to be OK,” Federline told the Daily Mail in an in-depth interview published on Saturday, August 6. “When Jamie took over, things got into order. He saved her life.”
Despite the restraining order, Federline claimed that the incident with Sean Preston is all water under the bridge. “I would absolutely welcome Jamie Spears back in the boys’ lives,” Britney’s ex said. “Especially if that’s what the boys wanted. I don’t have any hard feelings towards Jamie Spears. People make mistakes. I feel bad for him. I feel like he’s been put through the wringer.”
Federline also spoke out about his sons’ relationship with Britney, claiming they hadn’t seen her in months and were uncomfortable with her semi-nude Instagram photos. “They tried to give her the benefit of the doubt but at the same time, I can tell that sometimes, it hurts to be in that position,” the former reality TV star said.
When speaking of her June nuptials with Sam Asghari, he added: “[The boys] were happy for her, but they decided that, as they’re not seeing her right now, they made the decision not to go to her wedding.”
The groom was first to slam the Celebrity Fit Club alum’s statements. “There is not validity to his statement regarding the kids distancing themselves and it is irresponsible to make that statement publicly,” Asghari, 28, shared via Instagram Story on Saturday. “The boys are very smart and will be 18 soon to make their own decisions and may eventually realize the ‘tough’ part was having a father who hasn’t worked much in over 15 years as a role model.”
Britney responded later that evening with her own statement. “It saddens me to hear that my ex husband has decided to discuss the relationship between me and my children … as we all know, raising teenage boys is never easy for anyone,” she wrote via her Instagram Story. “It concerns me the fact that the reason is based on my Instagram … it was LONG before Instagram … I gave them every thing … Only one word: HURTFUL … I’ll say it … My mother told me ‘You should GIVE them to their dad’ … I’m sharing this because I can … Have a good day folks!!!”
Britney’s ex-husband isn’t worried about the trainer slamming him. “Kevin understands Sam is Britney’s new husband. Sam is not gonna take a position against Britney,” Kaplan said. “He respects him for standing up for his wife and doesn’t take it personally.”
Federline’s lawyer added on Monday that the teenagers are living their own lives. “There’s no doubt the boys love their mother, but they have their own lives that they want to lead and I don’t think you should read too much into it that they haven’t seen her for so long. There’s some things that have happened that have made them uncomfortable and hopefully that’ll get worked out over time,” he said.
Federline has been married since 2013 to Victoria Prince, who helps raise the boys (in addition to their two children and Federline’s two kids with ex Shar Jackson) while they live with their dad. “Kevin and his wife Victoria have worked 24/7, to the extent possible, to keep these children out of the publicity limelight,” Kaplan claimed. “Sam Asghari, I know he’s coming from the right place as far as protective husband … but he doesn’t know anything about Kevin. He doesn’t know anything about households of Kevin and Victoria.”
The attorney added, “These kids have never heard one negative word, not a syllable of negativity, against Britney, Sam, and they should appreciate that.”
Amid the strife with her sons, Britney and Jamie remain in a legal battle over the patriarch’s alleged financial mishandling of her estate after a judge officially terminated the singer’s conservatorship after 13 years in November 2021. During an emotional court hearing in June 2021, the “Stronger” singer claimed that Jamie and others involved in her conservatorship team should be “in jail.”
Us confirmed in September that her father filed paperwork to end his tenure as her conservator, which Britney’s attorney Mathew Rosengart called “a massive legal victory” for his client.
“Jamie unconditionally loves and supports his daughter. Full stop,” the filing read. “As he has done for her entire life, Jamie will do everything he can to protect and care for her. For the last 13 years, that included serving as her Conservator. Now, it means ending her Conservatorship. So it is said in no uncertain terms, Jamie believes that the Conservatorship should end, immediately.”
The Grammy winner’s legal team is working to get Jamie to give a deposition under oath to answer financial questions.
