Britney Spears Regains Right To Run Her Own Finances

Last month, Britney Spears’ 13-year conservatorship was officially terminated, bringing a monumental victory for the pop star and the #FreeBritney movement that championed her freedom. Legal proceedings continue, and on Wednesday Spears’ high-powered attorney, Mathew Rosengart, appeared at the Los Angeles Superior Courthouse for the latest hearing in the pop star’s case — this time to ensure Spears was granted “the power to execute documents herself.”

What does that mean, in layman’s terms? “She has the power to do whatever she wants to do,” Rosengart said outside the courthouse. Per Variety, Rosengart advocated to Judge Brenda Penny on behalf of Spears, saying “Ms. Spears, as an independent woman, not under conservatorship,” and therefore should be able to execute documents herself. Although Judge Penny fully terminated the conservatorship on November 12, accountant John Zabel was given power of execution of the estate trust and power to transfer assets into the trust. Zabel’s limited administrative power will be reassessed during the forthcoming January 19 hearing, which will likely deal further with Spears’ accounting affairs.

Spears’ father, Jamie, appeared remotely by phone while his attorney, Alex Weingarten, was present in the courtroom. Weingarten requested the right for his client to access the estate plan; he was quickly objected by Zabel’s attorney: “In a normal situation, a normal person would never have to show their estate plan” to their family or friends or anyone else.”

Speaking of Jamie, Rosengart briefly addressed some of the allegations against his client’s father, including whether TriStar Sports and Entertainment (Spears’ former business management company) had “dissipated assets” from Spears’ estate. “TriStar filed a motion to quash subpoenas that were served on TriStar, as well as Robin Greenhill, and that’s something the court is going to address during the hearing on Jan. 19,” said Rosengart outside of the courtroom.

Rosengart also added that Jaime has failed to cooperate with his firm’s requests for specific documents that will “shed light in regard to his abuses and the alleged conduct.” Along with allegations of “dissipated assets,” TriStar has been accused of running covert surveillance in the singers own home, eavesdropping on her conversations with her two sons, and more.

As for Spears’ current state of mind, Rosengart was succinct but positive: “I think she’s commented publicly through her Instagram posts what her state of mind is. She’s delighted. We had a great victory on Nov. 12. She’s a free woman after 13 years of an abusive conservatorship that we believe was corrupted, and I’ll leave it at that.”