Around two and a half years ago, US singer Britney Spears (42) was released from her father Jamie’s guardianship after a bitter legal dispute – now both have settled the remaining legal differences. As US media reported, they reached a million-dollar settlement in a Los Angeles court to pay the 71-year-old’s legal fees and other expenses.
The guardianship dispute is finally over, reported CNN. Details of the agreement were not disclosed, but lawyers for both sides confirmed it in statements to various media.
“Although the guardianship ended in November 2021, her wish for freedom is now truly fulfilled,” said Britney Spears’ attorney Mathew Rosengart. “As she wished, her freedom now includes no longer having to appear in court or deal with this matter,” he added. “Ms. Spears is and remains an icon and a brilliant and courageous artist of historic and epic proportions,” the lawyer praised the singer (“Baby One More Time”, “Oops!… I Did It Again”, “Toxic”).
Reconciliation between father and daughter is questionable
Alex Weingarten, the father’s lawyer, said: “Jamie is thrilled it’s all over.” His client has now been completely and permanently removed as administrator of his daughter’s assets, he added, according to the New York Times.
According to reports, it is questionable whether the agreement also heralds a reconciliation between the pop icon and her father. The “Times” recalled that the musician had once said in the hearings in the guardianship dispute that the 71-year-old and everyone involved should go to prison for the suffering caused to her.
Even after the end of the guardianship, which lasted around 13 years, both fought in court over legal fees, evidence and witness statements. The singer alone paid around $30 million for lawyers, wrote the New York Times. The father demanded reimbursement of two million dollars from her for his legal expenses – even though he had controlled his daughter’s assets for years.
The time during guardianship
The father now reached out through his lawyer: “Jamie loves his daughter very much,” said Weingarten, according to the reports. “There’s nothing he would love more than to reconcile and be a family again.” He always acted in Britney’s interests. She said at the time that he loved to exercise power over her. Under his years of guardianship, she was treated like a slave.
Spears, who has received multiple platinum records and Grammy Awards, is one of the most successful artists in music history. In 2008, her father took over guardianship of the musician after she had a mental breakdown due to private and professional problems. In mid-November 2021, the singer was released from this guardianship after a long legal battle.
