Britney Spears’ lawyer plans to file a petition to make the singer’s current “care manager” and temporary conservator, Jodi Montgomery, permanent, the singer’s lawyer, Samuel D. Ingham III, said on Wednesday during a short court hearing said.
Spears’ father Jamie stepped down from his role as the star’s personal conservator in 2019 due to health issues and a professional conservator – Montgomery – temporarily replaced him.
The petition, which will be heard at a hearing on April 27, will call for Montgomery to be appointed as Pears’s permanent conservator.
It was unclear whether the role would also meet the needs of her estate. Currently, both Jamie and Bessemer Trust oversee Spears ‘estate, while Montgomery currently acts as Spears’ ‘care manager’.
Meanwhile, the book trial on Wednesday would see the pop superstar’s co-custodians of her estate – Jamie and the new party Bessemer Trust – set out Spears’ finances in court.
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However, the trial has been postponed to a date in April, as the parties are working to determine an accurate list of assets and holdings, and where finances have been spent.
David Glass, a certified family law attorney and Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology – who is not involved in the case – told Fox News that ‘continuity is pretty standard in the bookkeeping hearings’, as ‘both parties are still trying to work out the assets and scores’.
Glass also weighed in on the development of the petition Wednesday, which he said could be the first real step to completely disband the collective conservatory.
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“One thing that was interesting was that Samuel Ingham, Britney’s legal adviser, announced that he was going to submit a petition to have Jodi Montgomery appointed as the person’s guardian,” Glass told Fox News minutes after the trial. closed. “Right now, Jamie and this Bessemer Trust are the custodians of the estate and the financial affairs. And now he is asking that this Jodi Montgomery become the permanent custodian of the person.”
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Glass calls the potential move a ‘big step’ for Montgomery, who took on the primary role of conservator in 2019.
“This is the person who only makes personal decisions for medical treatment and whether she needs bodyguards. Should she see a therapist? Anything but money issues for a person involved,” Glass explained.
Right, Britney Spears’ father has been her legal guardian for years.
(Getty Images)
A lot of the rumor about this was, ‘Why? [Britney] did you not ask to have the conservator removed? ‘This is perhaps the first step on that, at least to a personal conservator who she thinks will be kinder to her, more favorable to her. ‘
According to Glass, it appears that the move to promote Montgomery is essentially the most sensible move, as she is currently Spears’ care manager, a position that is a step below the conservator.
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“The caregiver collects information about the health of the Conservatives and their medical records and what their doctors say, and then summarizes the information and gives it to the conservatory. So it’s a step up for Ms. Montgomery.”
Jamie will have the opportunity to object to the petition to appoint Montgomery as the primary conservator as well.
“Jamie will be expected to lodge any objection as to why he thinks he should not be removed as guardian of the person. [Britney] and then the court can decide what to do if it needs more information, ”Glass said.
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“At that point, the court can set up a evidence hearing where people testify or if the court thinks it has enough information, it can decide at that point,” he continued. “It is rare for a court to make a decision based solely on the documents. They almost always go to an evidentiary system, a testimony hearing.”
Vivian Thoreen, Jamie’s acting attorney, requested that the case be continued on Wednesday. Although she did not give a reason for the request, both parties agreed to take recess until April 27.
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Jamie has been the target of the #FreeBritney movement since the singer was given renewed attention after the release of the documentary ‘Framing Britney Spears’. Currently, the conservancy gives Jamie control over the star’s estate. However, Spears recently began taking legal action to regain agency over her life.
Repears and attorneys for Spears did not immediately respond to Fox News’ request for comment.
Fox News’ Melissa Chrise and Tyler McCarthy contributed to this report