Britney Spears’ Father Files Court Docs Saying Daughter’s Treatment Under Conservatorship Is Not His Fault

Elizabeth Wagmeister
·7 min read
14
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

Following his daughter’s explosive testimony, Britney Spears’ father, Jamie Spears, has filed legal paperwork and is shifting blame.

This week, an attorney for Jamie Spears filed new documents, obtained by Variety, with the Los Angeles Superior Court regarding the conservatorship of his daughter, stating that he is “concerned” about her treatment.

More from Variety

But the elder Spears is saying he is not responsible, and he is placing the blame on others, specifically his daughter’s temporary conservator, Jodi Montgomery, and her attorney, Samuel Ingham III.

Jamie Spears was “greatly saddened to hear of his daughter’s difficulties and suffering, and he believes that there must be an investigation into those claims,” the new documents state.

The new documents, filed by the Jamie Spears’ attorney, Vivian Thoreen, on June 29, are a late response to the petition filed earlier this year by Spears’ attorney, Ingham III, to appoint Montgomery as Britney Spears’ permanent conservator. The pop star is under a conservatorship of both the estate and person, meaning her finances are controlled, along with essentially all medical and personal decisions. Her father is the conservator of the estate, controlling her financial decisions, and Montgomery is the temporary conservator over the person, at her request — though in her hearing last week, Britney Spears indicated that she is not happy with Montgomery, either.

Up until two years ago, Jamie Spears was the sole conservator. He temporarily relinquished his powers in September 2019.

In the past, Britney Spears has said in legal documents that she is afraid of her father. In court last week, she said she wants to sue her family and believes that her conservators should be in jail. She also told the judge that she wants to be able to choose her own attorney, rather than continue to be represented by court-appointed attorney Ingham.

“Not only did my family not do a goddamn thing, my dad was all for it,” Britney Spears told the judge last week. “Anything that happened to me had to be approved by my dad.”

The new documents show another side of the story — per Jamie Spears.

“Mr. Spears is concerned about the management and care of his daughter,” according to the paperwork, which states he has no intention in being appointed his daughter’s conservator of the person, and he firmly is in opposition to Montgomery in that role.

“Based on her statements to the court, Mr. Spears is concerned that the petition to appoint Jodi Montgomery filed by Ms. Spears’ court-appointed counsel Samuel D. Ingham III does not reflect her wishes. Ms. Spears told the court on June 23 that she is opposed to being under a conservatorship and revealed her ongoing disputes with Ms. Montgomery about her medical treatment and other personal care issues.”

Montgomery has been “fully in charge” of the star’s “day-to-day personal care and medical treatment” and Montgomery has “made all decisions related to those matters,” in consultations with Ingham, which excluded Jamie Spears, the paperwork states.

Last week in court, the star said she wants to get married and have a baby, but she has been prevented from removing her IUD at the doctor. In the new docs, her father indicates that he had no involvement in these restrictions.

“Unlike Ms. Montgomery and Mr. Ingham, Mr. Spears does not speak or meet with Ms. Spears’ medical team, and he is not permitted to nor does he have the opportunity to provide any input into his daughter’s current medical treatment, diagnosis, or therapy,” the docs state. “Not does Mr. Spears participate in or discuss Ms. Spears’ personal affairs with her, such as issues related to her self-care, marriage, and reproductive desires…Mr. Spears is simply not involved in any decisions related to Ms. Spears’ personal care of medical or reproductive issues.”

The documents reveal that Jamie Spears has been cut off from communicating with Britney Spears, stating, “Mr. Spears is unable to hear and addresses daughter’s concerns directly.”

Jamie Spears’ attorney also says that in prior years when he was the conservator of the person, he “did everything in his power to support and care for Ms. Spears’ well-being and her personal decisions including marriage.”

“Mr. Spears has dutifully served in various conservator roles for her thirteen years on behalf of his daughter, whom he loves unconditionally,” the docs state.

In court, the pop star described her conservatorship as “abusive” and told the judge that her father was controlling and acting against her will. She said after she was forced to take a psych test, her father called her to tell her that she had failed the test, and demanded she enter a rehab program that cost $60,000 per month.

“I cried on the phone for an hour and he loved every minute of it,” Spears told the judge, referring to her father. “The control he had over someone as powerful as me — he loved the control to hurt his own daughter 100,000%. He loved it.”

In response to Jamie Spears’ filing, Montgomery issued a lengthy statement, contradicting his claims that she is not acting in his daughter’s best interest.

“The conservatorship of the person for Britney Spears includes multiple layers of protection for Britney, including the Court, the court investigator which regularly updates the Court, her medical team, and my client, Jodi Montgomery,” said attorney Lauriann Wright. “In fact, conservatorships in California are subject to the strictest laws in the nation to protect against any potential abuses, including a licensing requirement for all professional fiduciaries. Ms. Montgomery is a licensed private professional fiduciary who, unlike family members who serve as conservators, is required to follow a Code of Ethics…Private professional fiduciaries often serve in cases as a neutral decision-maker when there are complex family dynamics, as in this case.”

Montgomery’s attorney said that, as her temporary conservator, she has been a “tireless advocate for Britney and for her well-being,” working with approval from doctors and oversight of the court. The lawyer states that if the singer wants any issue brought up with the court, Montgomery “is and has always been ready, willing and able to do so,” as the person responsible for her personal care.

“From the very beginning of her appointment in September 2019, Ms. Montgomery and the medical team that she assembled have had one primary goal — to assist and encourage Britney in her path to no longer needing a conservatorship of the person.”

Montgomery’s attorney stated that on the issue of Spears wanting to marry and have a baby, “that is unaffected by the conservatorship.” The statement continued, “If Britney needs any assistance with either, Ms. Montgomery has and will be there to provide any assistance needed to Britney. Britney’s choice to marry and to start a family have never been impacted by the conservatorship while Ms. Montgomery has been conservator of the person.

Denying Spears’ father’s claims against Montgomery, her attorney slams back, stating, “Because Ms. Montgomery does not have any power or authority over the conservatorship of the estate, every expenditure made by Ms. Montgomery for Britney has had to be first approved by Jamie Spears as the conservator of the estate…Practically speaking, since everything costs money, no expenditures can happen without going through Mr. Spears and Mr. Spears approving them.”

Appearing to respond to the star’s request to have the judge terminate her conservatorship altogether, Montgomery’s attorney said in her statement that she is working towards that goal.

“While it is Ms. Montgomery’s professional duty to be Britney’s protector and advocate, honoring her wishes and seeing to her best interests while Britney is under conservatorship, it is her sincere personal wish that Britney continues to make meaningful progress in her well-being so that her conservatorship of the person can be terminated. Ms. Montgomery looks forward to presenting a comprehensive Care Plan to the Court setting forth a path for termination of the conservatorship for Britney, and Ms. Montgomery looks forward to supporting Britney through that process.”

In court last week, Spears told the judge she is not entirely happy with Montgomery’s handling of her conservatorship. Earlier in 2021, Spears had petitioned for Montgomery to become her conservator, and was in support of her, over her father regaining control.

“I’m talking to you today,” Spears told the judge, “Because I feel again, yes, even Jodi is starting to kind of take it too far with me.”

Editor’s note: This article has been updated with the response from Jodi Montgomery’s attorney.

Best of Variety

Sign up for Variety’s Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.