Britney Spears has agreed to grant sole physical and legal custody of her two children, Sean Preston, who turns three in September, and Jayden James, nearly two, to her ex husband, Kevin Federline, 30. The 26 year-old pop star will receive visitation rights under the new custody arrangement. Both sides have agreed on the settlement but it needs to be approved by the judge, and Kevin and Britney are expected in court this morning. Kevin’s attorney says that it’s a thorough custody statement which also has provisions for when Britney is no longer under a conservatorship by her father. This means that there will be no custody trial as anticipated:
K-Fed’s longtime attorney Mark Vincent Kaplan exclusively tells E! News that the divorced duo have reached a settlement in their long-gestating custody case.
According to the agreement signed by all parties, Federline gets sole legal and physical custody of sons Sean Preston and Jayden James and Spears will have visitation rights.
“The case has been settled,” Kaplan said. “The court still has to approve it. ” Both parties are due in court Friday morning.
The case had been set to go to trial next month but all had been hoping to settle up beforehand.
“As of this evening there is a fully executed deal memo…All the issues that would have been addressed at trial have been settled,” Kaplan told E! News. “Can’t speak to the exact terms of the deal. Orders in place…will stay in place.”
But although this is theoretically good news for Federline, Kaplan maintains that this isn’t exactly what his client had in mind.
“Kevins was not [out] to get custody. Kevins goal was to set up some kind of template so the mother of his children can co-parent,” Kaplan said.
“He said I need to have Britney to be involved in the coparenting of the kids but I need there to be a structure.”
But this is the structure he got and “Kevin is absolutely delighted,” Kaplan continued.
“Nobody could have anticipated the terms of events that have occurred….This was a two-year journey that will be halted at a point that is good for these children. Custody is always modifiable. If there is a final order, it means there is nothing to try.”
Spears has been enjoying monitored visits with her boys since late February after temporarily losing any on-hand-mommying privileges following a stretch of noticeably erratic behavior on her part and two brief hospital stays.
Federline’s camp has credited the influence of Spears’ father Jamie, who was appointed a coconservator of his daughter’s estate Feb. 1, for helping to get the 26-year-old popster back on track.
A court commissioner is scheduled to review whether the make the conservatorship permanent at the end of this month. If the arrangement were to end, what then happens to Spears’ current deal?
“While I can’t tell you the terms, the order does anticipate what happens if the conservatorship is ended,” Kaplan told E! News. “The devil is always in the details and this is a very detailed deal memo.
“Nobody can predict what the future will bring but …to the extent possible I think we have really anticipated how to proceed.”
[From E! Online]
It’s been a long and expensive custody process for Britney and Kevin, with Britney responsible for paying most of the legal bills for both sides. It’s very likely that the total legal bills have exceeded half a million considering that Britney paid $375k to K-Fed’s lawyers way back in March. This has to be a welcome but bittersweet settlement for Britney. She’s finally back on track after all her problems earlier in the year, many of which were exacerbated and arguably caused by Sam Lutfi drugging her for months against her will. She gets to see her boys again but it will never quite be the same after what she went through. Hopefully for Britney it’s enough and she’ll be able to continue healing and working toward sobriety and a stable life with her children.
Britney is shown out with her mother on 7/11/08. Credit: SF / Splash News
Here’s to Brit healing and getting back on track! I’m not a fan of hers but it just seems like such a sad story.
Hopefully she will continue on the right path and be more and more involved with her children.
Good that things have “calmed down” for her and those boys.
Superficially, this seems the best for the boys. Now Brit and KFed can move on from the monkey on their back that was a war over their reputations using the kids as the weapon.
Britney is going to get a lot of flak for this – She will be accused of breaking a strict taboo; that of abandoning her children
Never mind that this is probably best all round for all four parties concerned, once she is seen to be partying again (and she will) the heat will start
I have to say that I’m still kind of surprised by this. I would’ve thought they wouldn’t settle it until Britney was back to her normal self again. Who in the world would’ve ever thought that KEVIN FEDERLINE could be a model parent, I mean really! Such a shame all around but Jamie seems to be doing a good job with his daughter so keep up the good work!
Custody CAN be changed. If she gets better in the long term, she certainly can petition to return to joint legal and/or physical custody. They needed to get SOMETHING settled so that they aren’t in court all the time being supervised by a judge — that’s no way to live. And she would lose any contest for sure at this point. If K-Fed continues to act like a grownup, and she demonstrates stability over time, this is the best outcome for their little guys. This settlement is the biggest proof so far that she is getting better and cares about her kids’ interests.
I am so curious about the details of what went on with Sam Lutfi. Where is he now, why hasn’t he been formally charged with a crime/crimes? It’s definitely strange if she’s going to mount some kind of a come back without answering some questions. Her public image requires more then a makeover to be accepted back into the spotlight. You know what I mean, it’s like a new weave isn’t really fooling anyone into thinking you are well again. If there is to be a comeback I hope it’s an authentic one, owning up to the mistakes, the drug abuse, the illness, the relationships, the whole shabang! Amy whinehouse is a cracky mess but I would buy anything she puts out because it will be REAL. I hope Brittney gets it right this time, it would be FANTASTIC.
Thank God both sets of grandparents are involved since the parents are jerks.
Never thought that HE would turn out to be the better of the two, but there it is. While I still think he is a no-talent jerk, he does seem to be devoted to his kids and at least appears to be trying hard to do what is best for them. I hope those boys aren’t too scarred from this drama so early in their lives.
I suspect this is probably all for the best for all concerned.
Bit sad, hope Brit continues to get well and normal service is resumed and that this will be a temporary thing.
Still can’t stand K-Fed, still think he and his money-grabbing lawyers used her as a cash cow and tried to bleed her dry when she was most vulnerable.
Can Sam Lufti be sued for anything? He obviously preyed on Britney whan she was at her weakest & should be held accountable for it…
I’m glab they ahve some kind of concrete agreement. Those boys need stability. So does Brit, for that matter
Good question Bodhi. Haven’t seen him in a while. He should at least be investigated for drugging her.
I wondered the same thing about Sam Lufti… he should be prosecuted or something. Where is he holed up now?
As to the boys, I agree with most of the posters, best to get this thing resolved for now. This girl needs to focus on cleaning up her image and getting healthy again after all the crap she went through – by people she trusted.
WOW, what great children you raised Spears’ Mom.. WHAT A NUTJOB
I would LOVE to blame someone for what has happened to her like LUFTI. But Brits problems are waaaaaaaaaay before that skunk ever entered the picture. Sad but the truth is in my opinion this child was practically pimped out by her family and made the bread winner at a very young age. She is not fit to raise children because unfortunately for her, she did not have a childhood or any indication of what child rearing is. She was a show pony for her family. Her mother, makes me sick. Absolutely sick. I look at her and I wonder how anyone could allow their child to do what Britney did. That Lolita thing. Good God when will people learn that just because a kid “WANTS” to do something does not mean it is healthy or right and THAT is the role of a parent.
KFED is no angel but he is clearly the more responsible parent and probably somewhere in his history has alot better grasp of what it means to raise children and not just have them as either an accessory or a showpiece.
Lufti, was just the fall guy. Look to the Disney Suits and the Record Execs for your true villians.
And THEN watch Miley Cyrus. Same thing… ten years later.
Everyone was so surprised that Britney wasn’t the better parent of the two, but c’mon, she never had the right motives for being a parent. She just wanted to rush and have kids with Kevin b/c he already had kids w/someone else. She’s never, ever seemed very interested in those poor kids.
I agree that everyone who exploited Britney should feel partly responsible. On the other hand, I grew up under very hard conditions, and I worked my tail off to succeed in life. Britney’s a self-centered airhead and she’s to blame, also. To have what she has and blow it is inexcusable.
Nothing wrong with a capable father having sole physical custody of the children. It doesn’t mean Britney won’t still participate as their MOTHER or that she’s abandoning them. Lots of fathers have custodial rights – whatever is the most stable for the kids, I say.
And, Poe – you’re a sick individual.
SlimeFed has no choice but to be a good parent if he is out of work and needs Britney’s money to live on. Yes, she may have had problems before Sam, but SlimeFed screwed behind her back, and drugging you with out your knowledge, in your own home totally messed this girl up! Britney has been thru hell but is now turning her life around. In the end, when she is well, she should get joint custody.
I don’t believe she cares a whole lot about those kids or she would never have screwed up her life so bad so as to lose then in the first place. She had several chances and continued to blow it. While I don’t think KF cares much either, at least he has the sense to hire someone who can take proper care of them. A nanny will never be as good as a parent, but it’s way better than a drunk/druggy parent.
Finally she’s dumped the kids off on K-Fed. Now it’s time for Brit to PARTY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It’s been so nice not hearing anything about her. Can’t we keep doing that?
Even before Lutfi and the head shaving, umbrella wielding incidents, she was not a good mother. I’ve read too many stories of how she would sit with her children on her lap, simply sitting, then signal to a nanny that “I’m finished with them.” She’s too immature and self-centered to be a mother to those kids. I’d love to see her involved more in their lives, so they’d at least feel they HAVE a mother, but I suspect Shar Jackson is more of a mother figure to them than Britney is. I hope she is getting serious psychiatric help, as well as the right medications, because Britney is one messed up girl.
Britney might be 26 yrs old but on an emotional level she’s probably about 12. Kind of hard to be a good parent when you haven’t even grown up yourself.
I have absolutely no love for Spears, and as much as I’d love to bash her for not fighting for her kids, I really think this is the best situation for all parties involved. Especially the little guys. Brit needs to get past her narcissism before she can be a better mom, and the boys will grow up healthier not having her directly in their lives.
Tia….Britney has a mental illness.
That does NOT make her a “nutjob”.
I read a post on another blog that claimed Britney was now a “good mother” because she had warmed to the idea of “making sacrifices” for her kids. She hasn’t made any, yet, mind you, but she’s starting to entertain the notion of not living entirely for herself. She’s a disgrace on every possible level.
The only people I have sympathy for in this mess are the kids. I just pray they love their nanny and that she stays in the picture.
Mental illness = nutjob 😀
Britney finally made the first smart move of her entire life. 🙄
kids as fashion accessories springs to mind…
I just dont get this. I would never give up my kids for ANY reason.
These kids are going to need a LOT of therapy.
Now Britney can smoke crack and not have to worry about changing diapers except her own.
Don’t need a vagina to be a good parent!
i think this girl is truly a lost soul. I was annoyed when she continuously courted the media for her own twisted, self-indulging satisfaction – but I don’t think she knew anything else. At the end of the day, I do feel sorry for her. Yes, she had the world at her feet, and the choices available to her that most dream of… but she was pimped out by her family and managers for most of her young life – having children and marrying the first guy who seemed willing to take it on did not surprise me. I wonder where she would be had she never had children with him. Once she had them, it seems like there was no escape or the option to returning to youth again – which is exactly what she missed out on…
Her mother sounded awful. With two pregnant teenagers, doesn’t that say enough?!?
EDUCATION is so important. These two girls are living examples.
Some people are not meant to be parents. I am one. Britney is one. She simply didn’t have the option to have an abortion or give them up for adoption – the media would have had a field day!(or month) if she had done either. And people who I KNOW are going to say BIRTH CONTROL. I’m going to say right now, that IT DOESN’T ALWAYS work, particularly if you are on other medication.
Being raised by Brit or Cletus is a lose/lose situation for any child.
California court systems suck. Not only is Kevin and his attorneys money ucking scum. I also believe the Judge was paid off too. What kind of judge follow the crap of the Media. Although sole physical custody of the kids may be better off w/ K dirt right now, the mother should continue to have joint legal custody, especially so both parents can be apart of important decision making processes.
What a deal! Go K-Fed, Go!!!
Be a sperm donor and hit the jackpot with spousal support forever!
Brittney got her wish of a family without strings. K-Fed gets his wish with enough money each month to hire a nanny to watch the kids while he parties with his home boys. Sounds like everyone should be happy.
Damn I wish I’d been the one Brittney wanted as a donor…