Britney Spears Inches Closer to Ousting Her Father From Conservatorship

Spears. Photo: Getty Images

Britney Spears is inching closer to cutting out her estranged father from managing her finances. Spears’s new attorney, Mathew Rosengart, filed docs on Monday, July 26, asking Judge Brenda Penny to appoint a professional fiduciary to run her estate rather than her father, Jamie Spears.

Britney, who signed the documents on July 24 with what appears to be just a “B,� asked the court to appoint Jason Rubin, a forensic accountant and a professional fiduciary, to run her finances instead of her father, who has been at the helm of her estate for the past 13 years. According to the court filing, Britney currently has $57,396,852.36 of assets and property on hand, which includes $2.7 million in cash that Rubin would be in charge of managing. Rosengart’s papers note that Rubin’s appointment would be necessary if the court approves his client’s concurrently filed pending petition to remove her father from his role as Britney’s conservator of her estate.

Britney has been adamant, speaking out at recent court hearings, that she does not want her father involved in her conservatorship at all. Rosengart has also stated publicly that it is inexplicable that Jamie has not just stepped down in light of Britney’s very vocal wishes.

“I don’t know why Jamie Spears doesn’t resign today,� Rosengart said outside the Los Angeles courthouse to the media after a court hearing last Monday. “He purports to love his daughter, and his daughter has repeatedly asked him to step down. So I’m going to give him the opportunity right now to voluntarily resign.�

Rosengart said after the July 14 Spears hearing that he would be “promptly and aggressively� moving for Jamie Spears’s removal. “The question remains why is he involved,� said Rosengart. “He should step down voluntarily, as that is in the best interests of Britney Spears consistent with the law of conservatorships.�

If he’s approved, among other things Britney wants Rubin to have control over is “the power and authorization to pursue opportunities related to professional commitments and activities including but not limited to performing, recording, videos, tours, TV shows, and other similar activities as long as they are approved by the conservator of the person, the Conservatee’s medical team.�

According to Rubin’s bio, he has more than 20 years of experience handling and managing “complex trust portfolios containing Real Estate, Closely-Held Entities, Investments and other Financial Assets totaling over $250 million that also involve very complex estate tax returns.� He worked previously at PricewaterhouseCoopers and was a director of the litigation support and business valuation practice at CBIZ. He also co-leads the forensic financial and accounting litigation support arm at Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP.

Britney’s conservatorship, which was set to expire in July, was also extended by Penny until October 8, according to court papers. A hearing is set for December 13 at 1:30 p.m. PT for Penny to approve Britney’s request.

Attorneys for Jamie Spears have not responded yet to a request for comment.