Britney Spears, closer to freedom after hiring a new lawyer
The Superior Court of Los Angeles allowed Britney Spears to choose her own lawyer on Wednesday, a substantial change in the legal guardianship that has controlled her life for more than 13 years and that the singer wants to end.
From now on, Britney will be represented by Mathew Rosengart, a lawyer who has handled cases of celebrities such as Sean Penn and Steven Spielberg, and whose first objective will be to remove Jamie Spears, father of the artist, from guardianship.
"We will mobilize quickly and aggressively for his withdrawal. The question remains, why is he involved? He should resign voluntarily because that is what is best for the ward," Rosengart said after leaving the court in statements collected by the CNN.
The lawyer also expressed his willingness to "analyze from top to bottom what has happened during the last decade" and supported the idea of ending the guardianship in the near future.
Since 2008, Britney had been represented by Samuel Ingham, a court-appointed attorney who recently asked to retire after his work was called into question when the singer said she never let him speak out against the guardianship and reports from The newspaper. New York Times who estimate that he would have made more than $ 3 million from this case.
The decision, made this Wednesday by Judge Brenda Penny, is a serious setback for the singer's father and co-tutor Jodi Montgomery, the only ones who remain involved in the guardianship after the Bessemer Trust, the fund that supervised the Britney's estate, valued at 60 million.
But in addition, the fact that Britney can hire her own representative calls into question the existence of her own legal guardianship, a mechanism reserved for severely disabled people who are not supposed to take care of themselves.
Thus, the judge's decision sets a precedent in the Britney case that could be transferred to the rest of the system that protects this legal mechanism, in full controversy thanks to the singer's notoriety.
NEW BRITNEY STATEMENTS
The singer intervened again by phone this Wednesday, despite the fact that her appearance was not in the plans of the hearing.
"I am here to get rid of my father and report him for abuse," she said.
The interpreter of "Toxic" described the 13 years of her deprived of her freedom as an "absolute cruelty" in which she came to think that they wanted to kill her and whose only objective was to make her feel that she "was crazy".
Britney's father took over her personal life and finances after a period of erratic behavior that made headlines in 2008.
Although the measure was temporary in its inception, it has been maintained throughout 13 years in which the artist has acted, published albums and starred in a millionaire show in Las Vegas between 2013 and 2017, sometimes against the will her.
Last week, Britney's mother, Lynne Spears, requested that her daughter be able to choose a lawyer: "Now, and in recent years, the ward is capable of taking care of himself and, in fact, within the parameters From guardianship, he has made literally millions of dollars as an international celebrity, "he argued.
Her comment came after a statement from her sister, Jamie Lynne Spears, who assured that she had already recommended that Britney hire another lawyer in private conversations.
However, her father, Jamie Spears (they are divorced) has not taken any steps to withdraw from guardianship or relax any aspect of her.
SUPPORT FROM THOUSANDS OF FOLLOWERS
"The statements of the mother and daughter seem good to me, but they could have spoken before," reasoned Rafael, one of the hundreds of protesters who gathered at the door of the Los Angeles courts.
The case has gone around the world after Britney's statement on June 23 and this Wednesday demonstrations were called in cities such as New York and Washington DC during the hearing.
"It's my first time here, but after what I heard I couldn't miss it. I'm very sad for everything that woman has gone through," Suzane said in front of the Californian court.
