Just over a month after Britney Spears gave a bombshell statement expressing publicly for the first time that she wants her longstanding conservatorship come to an end she’s formally asking the court to replace her father as conservator of her estate.
During more than 20 minutes of emotional testimony on June 23, and additional comments in a July 14 hearing, Spears made it quite clear she isn’t happy with her father’s involvement — going as far as accusing him of conservatorship abuse. After more than a decade of little change to the status quo, the pace of developments surrounding Spears’ conservatorship over the past several weeks seems breakneck, but even with a lawyer of her choosing in finally her corner the pace from here on out is likely to be disappointing to those demanding #FreeBritney. The judicial system can move slowly even when it isn’t faced with a pandemic-related backlog.
Spears’ new attorney, Mathew Rosengart, on Friday filed a petition to appoint Jason Rubin as the successor to the conservator of Spears’ estate and the paperwork indicates Spears has picked him. Rubin is a licensed professional fiduciary and certified public accountant (CPA) who, according to his website, has ten years of experience and has managed complex portfolios with financial assets valued over $35 million. His background also includes financial elder abuse litigation and considerable forensic accounting experience.
“Ms. Spears respectfully submits that the Court should appoint her nominee; in that, it is an objectively intelligent preference to nominate a highly qualified, professional fiduciary in this circumstance,” states the petition, which is embedded below. “Moreover, Ms. Spears respectfully submits that, given the Court’s recognition at the July 14, 2021, hearing that Ms. Spears has sufficient capacity to choose her own legal counsel, she likewise has sufficient capacity to make this nomination.”
While Rosengart made it clear the ultimate goal is to end the conservatorship, he’s following up on his promise that he would “be filing as quickly as possible to get Mr. Spears removed.” Rosengart during the July 14 hearing suggested Jamie should voluntarily quit, but his lawyer Vivienne Thoreen declined saying,“There is no basis for him stepping down.”
The court on Friday approved Bessemer Trust’s request to resign as co-conservator of the estate, which leaves Jamie solo in that role for at least a few more months. A hearing on Rubin’s appointment is tentatively set for Dec. 13, and Spears in the petition indicated she will attend.
Meanwhile, also on Friday L.A. County Superior Court Judge Brenda Penny signed an order temporarily extending Jodi Montgomery’s role as conservator of Spears’ person until Oct. 8. Montgomery, who has served in the position for about two years, indicated in a filing earlier this month that despite escalating threats to her safety she won’t be “abandoning” Spears.
Spears Petition for Appoint… by THROnline
This story was originally published by The Hollywood Reporter.
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