Britney Spears' Conservatorship Is Terminated After 13 Years

The singer had her latest conservatorship hearing on Friday.

Britney Spears is officially free from her conservatorship.

After 13 years, the 39-year-old singer's conservatorship has ended after Friday's hearing, ET confirms. Per Judge Brenda Penny, the end of the conservatorship depends on a ruling on a petition for substituted judgment, which will be held on Dec. 8, as well as a transfer of assets to Britney's trust.

Britney's attorney, Mathew Rosengart, began by expressing that the main reason they were meeting was to terminate the conservatorship, referencing Britney's quotes she made in her testimony. He also touched on wanting to end the conservatorship without a medical evaluation.

During Friday's hearing, Rosengart mentioned Certified Public Accountant John Zabel, who was appointed as temporary conservator of the estate after Britney's father, Jamie Spears, was suspended. The attorney noted that for the financial side, "a couple of things still have to be done."

Counsel for Jodi Montgomery, who has been Britney's conservator of person, said that Montgomery will be working with the team for a peaceful transition, saying, "She will be there for her."

Judge Penny asked Rosengart if the court were to terminate the conservatorship, what happens to the temporary conservatorship orders, asking, "Will it dissolve today?" Rosengart said no and mentioned the caveats filed by Zabel's attorney, saying he, "Filed judgment for administrative powers that doesn't block the conservatorship terminated today, but he will have two basic powers. 1) to execute trust documents itself, 2) to execute supplemental documents, healthcare and power of attorney."

Rosengart stated that Zabel will remain executive of trust assets and will provide a "concierge service for Ms. Spears." Montgomery's attorney, Lauriann Wright, also added that there will be a "smooth transition" with Montgomery and they are "in full support of petition judgment" and "Ms. Spears can live a safe, happy, fulfilled life." Britney's mom, Lynne Spears, also appeared via video.

The financial portion of things will be discussed at a Jan 19, 2022, hearing.

After the decision, Britney took to social media to celebrate the news. Celebrities also expressed their happiness for the entertainer.

Britney's father was suspended as conservator of Britney's estate in September. Shortly after, he hired new attorneys and filed to "immediately terminate" his daughter's conservatorship.

However, Rosengart questioned his motives. The lawyer filed legal documents and claimed Jamie was trying to avoid being deposed under oath because he didn't want to answer questions about Britney's home and phone allegedly being bugged, according to court documents also obtained by ET.

Rosengart noted in his filing that Jamie's new desire to immediately end the conservatorship was "motivated by a desire to bolster his reputation or to avoid his deposition or responding to the outstanding discovery served on him in August."

Rosengart also requested all documents between Jamie and Tri Star, which detail any agreements, communications regarding payments made to Tri Star from the estate and payments made by the estate for legal services provided to Tri Star. He also requested to ask the singer's father under oath how much money he has received from his daughter's estate since the conservatorship began.

Jamie first filed to end the conservatorship in September. The news came nearly a month after he said he'd be willing to step down as conservator of her estate "when the time is right."

At the time, Rosengart called Jamie's move a "major victory" for the singer "and another step toward justice."

Rosengart also told ET after Jamie's suspension that Britney was "happy" about the decision. "I think you can assume she's very happy," he shared, also telling reporters that "the goal" was to free Britney from her conservatorship by her 40th birthday on Dec. 2.

However, there still remains a couple of things to be settled. Earlier this month, Lynne turned to Britney's legal team to help cover legal fees she incurred while attempting to help free her daughter from her conservatorship. In court documents obtained by ET, counsel for Lynne is asking the courts to pay for their fees (and an outside counsel hired to be local counsel in California) to the tune of $663,202.54.

Lynne claims in the docs that she hired the firm Jones Swanson Huddell & Garrison LLC in 2019, to see "what they could do to get involved to help Britney free herself from what she saw was a very controlling existence," and to "achieve independence from her conservator father Jamie."

The filing came a day after Britney accused Lynne of being the real mastermind behind her conservatorship in a since-deleted post.

Meanwhile, attorney Tamar Arminak told ET ahead of the hearing that Britney's case and her conservatorship is "going to change" the way the courts handle conservatorships in the future.

"Absolutely a game changer and a reason, a very public reason, to modernize the conservatorship system," Arminak expressed. "I think Britney Spears' case, and all that we've learned over the last two years, is gonna definitely change the way the courts, at least in Los Angeles, look at conservatorships and deal with conservatees."

The pop star, meanwhile, has been focusing on her wedding to boyfriend Sam Asghari. This week, she shared that her wedding dress was being made. Before her hearing, she and Sam showed off their "#FreeBritney" shirts, which read, "It's a human rights movement." 

For more on Britney, see below.

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