Britney Spears’ father Jamie has been appointed the permanent conservator of her estate. He was first named conservator, which means he was granted control of her health care, legal, and financial affairs, earlier this year. Britney was placed in the hospital for a psychiatric hold in January following a high profile incident in which she refused to hand over one of her children for a scheduled visit with his father. Upon release from the hospital, she immediately returned to staying in hotels and driving around aimlessly trailed by tens of paparazzi, at which point her father became her legal conservator by court order. In Canada, a conservatorship is called “guardianship,” a simpler term which makes more sense to me. Britney’s dad will essentially be her legal guardian now indefinitely until a court lifts the order.
Britney seems like she’s doing so much better now under her father’s supervision, and I thought that it might be time to lift the order. This may not indicate that a court thinks Britney is permanently incapable of running her own affairs, however as she is said to be on board with it in an effort to gain back custody rights to her two children:
Lawyers in the Britney Spears conservatorship case have just asked the court commissioner to make her conservatorship permanent. And the judge said she would grant the request.
The conservatorship was scheduled to end on December 31.
Sources say one reason why Brit & Co. wanted to extend the conservatorship is that it makes it easier for her to regain custody of her kids — the family law commissioner will feel more comfortable giving her added face time if there is a safety net.
The conservators will now also be responsible for handling her business affairs and career opportunities.
As for why they suddenly asked for a permanent conservatorship — we’re told the commish doesn’t want to keep extending temporary power…that it makes more sense to make the conservatorship permanent and then just lift it when Brit is safe and sound.
Under the permanent conservatorship a medical team will oversee Britney’s career to make sure what she does will not compromise her mental health.
The commish said, “The conservatorship is necessary and appropriate for the complexity of financial and business entities and her being susceptible to undue influence.”
[From TMZ]
It’s that last line about “undue influence” that really gets me, because people forget and/or underestimate the role that extreme creep Sam Lutfi had on pushing Britney over the crazy cliff. She was having issues with manic-depression before he entered the picture, but he really did a number on her and drugged her without her knowledge or full consent. He even disabled her phones and cars and emotionally and maybe even physically abused her. Britney is healthy and thriving now, but she does have a hell of a lot of money and a complicated career to manage. Her father and his advisors are doing a great job and it seems like she recognizes that too.
Britney Spears is shown with her dad, Jamie, picking up her son Jayden James from school in Encino, California on 10/10/08. Credit: WENN
Permanently?? So when she’s 60 she has to ask her daddy if she can buy a new house?
Brit needs her Dad in her life – maybe for years but permanently is a long time
Makes good sense to me. Brit’s relative normalcy is only a very recent thing and we only know what we see and what her PR puts out about her. Reckon there’s still a bit of fragility lurking there. Good for her that she’s sees that and that she now has a decent and genuinely supportive family member looking out for her interests.
The order can be lifted once she’s deemed healthy so the order won’t be permanent if she can show the people around her that she’s capable of taking care of things herself. She seems to know that this is what is best for her right now so that’s a sign that she is well on her to getting better.
“Permanent” in law means only “until the court decides otherwise”. It just means they won’t have to keep having hearings and extending the deadline another ninety days, and so forth.
I like “conservatorship” better than “guardianship” since one implies saving, and one implies needing a guard.
I’m sure if she does a complete turnaround, stops falling for the smooth talkers, gets her life together and shows herself capable of managing things, that Jamie would be more than willing to ask the court to remove him as his daughter’s conservator. From experience I can tell you that having to take care of grown children is not fun, and he’d probably rather go back to his own life himself.
For the life of me, I can’t understand why my comment requires moderating. Gah!
It’s sorta like getting parole for being mentally ill. I know she needs it but….
Behave or else!
I don’t know how I feel about this…particularly in light of the custody issue and what part that played in her apparently being on board with the decision.
Well, better parole ie. protection than jail ie. return to insanity and her old ways.
All you legal eagles should jump in and tell us what this looks like to you — to me it makes some sense. If they’ve evaluated her situation and think that she needs her dad’s help for the next couple of years (to include her new album release and a new tour, etc.) then this makes more sense than returning to court every 3-6 months to extend it.
She does seem to be doing better, but if she really is going to TOUR, I’ll bet she needs more help for longer. Going on tour looks like it would make a very down-to-earth, healthy person lose her mind! When I heard she was going on tour I figured her recovery had stalled.
I did attempt to explain, texasmom, but I’m still in moderation. 👿 Basically, the permanent means only that they don’t have to run back every few months to evaluate her. Nothing is truly permanent, and should she actually recover, the conservatorship can be removed. So it’s a good thing, less time in court, less money spent on legal matters.
Yeah, it sounds like a good thing. I think you’re right Syko – if a year or two passes and she’s doing really well, they could probably go back to court and revoke the conservatorship.
Does anyone know if she’s back to her original manager? Larry something, I think?
Syko…….thanx 4 explaining. That makes a lot more sense. I thought permanent meant irrevocable
from a physicians standpoint….. she is still teetering on the edge of mental health. she is not “cured”.
yes, she is doing better than last year.
yes, creepy people in her life were taking advantage of her.
yes, she is an adult who should be capable of caring for herself, but the fact remains that she’s not capable at this point.
what the general public and brit fans fail to realize, that cookie has been crumbling for a long time and is not just the work of one year and a few bad seeds. britney has some major demons to deal with from her childhood and her acting out has been going on for a long time. she has some serious narcissism issues and a FU to the world attitude. her parents never set guidelines and rules to follow since they were hitching their wagons to her rising star.
again, this was the same woman who chose to lose custody of her children and continually argue with parent coaches and her lawyers. this is the area she needs to work on. she needs to learn at 26 that there are consequences to actions and money can’t solve all your issues.
i honestly wish she would step out of the lime light for now and really give the time needed to balance herself out and create new bonds with her children. going on a world tour at their young ages again seems to point out what is most important in brit’s life (and it’s not her kids). she has money. she has homes. she has food to eat. how much more does one really need?
I could not agree more with you, dr.grrl. This illness is not a sudden thing, and it’s compounded by various personality – do I say “flaws”? Also, if she is, as I understand, bipolar, isn’t this something that is not cured but only controlled? I doubt if she is ever “well”, but will be only “under control at the moment”.
I also think backing off on the career would not be a bad idea. Surely she has enough money that she and her kids could live, if not in the ridiculous luxury they have enjoyed, at least in a nice home, and have everything necessary for a good life. She should stay away from the entertainment business and spend time with her sons.
Hard to believe she is 26. Acts like she’s 16
thanks syko! 8)
OK well dr. grrl just said everything I was going to say but much, much better… 😛
It may be years beyond what it should have been, but better late than never – I’m talking about actual PARENTING. Yeah, at 26 or whatever she shouldn’t need it but as dr. grrl said she never had proper boundaries, a proper childhood to begin with. So yeah, better late than never. I used to LOATHE Britney but watching her spiral so low made me realize just how messed up she’s been, and for how long. So while I still thing she cannot sing and I wish she’d stop trying 😛 I’m happy she’s doing better.
dr.grrl got it right. honestly? i think this girl is psychologically damaged – from which recovery will be tough since she’s so much older now. Her parents were not parents to her when she needed them to be. As a result, i believe that whe will continue to throw these fits in a desperate attempt to revert to those years. It’s a means of getting attention, but is also a veiled cry for help. Those eyes still look pretty lost to me. If she had the sense in her, she would walk away from Hollywood and get centered somewhere with her kids. But with her parents “guiding” her – how could she? She was just never given the tools . . . hope her children don’t turn into disturbed drug addicts, and that the cycle doesn’t repeat itself with them.
wow… thanks everyone!
i’ve been hiding under my desk waiting for the brit-loonies to come out and berate me! 😉
Oh please people! Dr. grrl did not get it ALL right. sure she is fragile, bipolar, has childhood demons, but, be honest, except for bi polar – we all can testify to the others. She is human, we all have “flaws”, some of us never finding out exactly what they are and living life without mental help. World tour better now. Good for Britney’s self esteem, pay off legal pills, financial problems, most incurred at time of Sam (the drugger)and when the kids are older, in school, they will need her home then, and then she will have more custody. Listen up folks, Team Britney is doing a great job and what’s best in the long run.
But if she didn’t get naked and go on tour, then no one would pay attention, y’all!
She’s doomed if she needs constant positive attention from the public to keep her happy. Her remaining fans will outgrow her very soon and future generations just aren’t going to understand her appeal. She can only ride this sympathy wave for so long until it loses momentum and once again the world sees her for what she really is… the backup dancer who gets to move her mouth. She should call her new album Undertalented.
“legal pills”……
ain’t that the truth 😆
Britney has years of crazy left in her. She needs Papa to manage her affairs for at least another 15 years, until the kids are grown.
As my therapist puts it…Britney is being “re-parented” right now.
This woman had no childhood. Her issues are understandable and really not all that unusual.
She’s getting help. It’s working. She’s making progress. Having grandpa in the picture makes a safe, stable environment for the kids. It’s good. It’s really good.
I’m pleased to hear this, and I bet you anything we’ll see her back on her feet and independent again in a year or two.
I sincerely doubt she truly has bi-polar disorder. Perhaps bi-polar II, or even depression pocked with drug-induced hypo-manic episodes, but bi-polar I disorder is as rare as full-blown schizophrenia or IQs above 160. As special as Britney is, it just doesn’t happen all that often, despite the rising “trend” of this particular diagnosis.
I’m not saying that the girl doesn’t have issues. She clearly does, and she seems to be making good progress working through a lifetime’s worth of unresolved issues. But claiming to be bi-polar (I) is a convenient excuse to absolve oneself of all social and parental responsibilities, however – and I’ve seen many adults ride out their diagnosis as far as sympathetic observers will carry them. That’s not what a person in Brit’s condition needs. She has to summon the will and the fortitude to continue making progress.
Good, makes sense, she’s not out of the woods yet. Only time will tell.