Britney Spears told a court this week that her decade long conservatorship was voluntary.
The conservatorship — known in other states as legal guardianship — has been in place for the past 12 years and dictates the 38-year-old singer’s legal and professional life, under the supervision of a conservator, which, in her case, has mostly been her father, Jamie Spears.
After the conservatorship was extended last month, it was revealed that the singer’s sister, Jamie Lynn Spears, was named the trustee of the “SJB Revocable Trust,” which was initially set to protect the pop star and her children’s finances, according to court documents. Her sister had reportedly asked for Spears’ trust to be relocated, as she is the trustee.
Now according to new documents, the “Toxic” singer asked the court to appoint Bessemer Trust Company, N.A. to serve as conservator of her estate. The company would control the Spears’ finances and control the power of attorney for her medical health decisions and musical career.
“This is a voluntary conservatorship. Conservatee wishes to exercise her right to nominate a conservator of the estate…,” her attorney, Samuel Ingham III, wrote in a Monday filing obtained by Entertainment Tonight.
The court documents also say Spears “wishes to exercise her right to nominate a conservator of the estate under Probate Code section 1810.”
The documents further state that the singer does not have a developmental disability, nor is she a patient in or on leave of absence from a state institution under the jurisdiction of the California Department of State Hospitals or the California Department of Developmental Services.
Last month, Britney “strongly opposed” her father continuing as the sole conservator of her estate.” She “strongly prefers” to have a qualified corporate fiduciary appointed to serve in that role, according to the new filing.
Britney’s complex conservatorship concerned her fans, who believed that her father had taken control of his daughter’s assets. The singer’s devotees fueled the #FreeBritney viral campaign to release her from her father’s legal and professional control.
Jamie Spears’ denied the allegations, saying “I have to report every nickel and dime spent to the court every year,” he said. “How the hell would I steal something?”
A hearing on the matter, which Spears said she’ll attend, is scheduled for Nov. 10.