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Artist News Legal
Britney Spears’ lawyer accuses her father’s lawyer of lying in court, and sister of lying in interviews
By Andy Malt | Published on Thursday 20 January 2022
There was a heated exchange between attorneys for Britney and Jamie Spears yesterday, in the latest court hearing regarding the winding up of the pop star’s long running conservatorship. Both lawyers accused each other of lying, and they fought over a request by Jamie to have his daughter continue to pay his $1200 an hour legal fees.
Despite Jamie being removed as his daughter’s conservator – and the conservatorship that had managed Britney’s personal and financial affairs since 2008 being terminated – the legal arrangement is still to be fully brought to a close. In December, Jamie said that Britney should continue to pay his legal fees – as she did throughout the conservatorship – in order to ensure that it is “wound up quickly and efficiently”.
Earlier this week, Britney’s attorney Mathew Rosengart filed new court papers in an effort to block that request. He said that his client should not have to cover her father’s costs, given that he was removed as conservator prior to the guardianship being terminated.
He also again accused Jamie of numerous acts of financial and other impropriety during his time overseeing his daughter’s affairs – including that claim that he paid a security firm $6 million to spy on Britney and others.
These claims were discussed in a heated court hearing yesterday, in which Jamie’s attorney Alex Weingarten accused Rosengart of making up stories about his client and feeding them to the press – particularly the surveillance story, which first appeared in the New York Times last year.
“Lies!” shouted Rosengart in response to this, according to Variety. He said that Weingarten had made “nonsensical” and “preposterous” claims against him and “should be admonished”, adding: “He has attacked me, he has attacked this court, and it is intolerable”.
Weingarten also argued that Jamie’s side is “fighting with our hands behind our back”, due to Britney’s ability to get her version of events out to a wide audience via social media and the press. As well as continuing to request that Jamie’s legal fees be covered – a decision on which was not made yesterday – Weingarten also requested that records from the entire case be unsealed in order to reveal the “truth”, saying that “public has the right to know”.
Rosengarten called that request “offensive” and “highly inappropriate”, adding: “We don’t think a father who loves his daughter would file to unseal her medical records”.
No ruling was made on that request either. The next major hearing on the case will take place in July, while another was set for March to specifically hear Rosengart’s objections to a request for Britney to cover the legal fees of her mother, Lynne Spears.
Meanwhile, outside of court, Rosengart has also been battling Britney’s younger sister, Jamie Lynn. He has sent a cease-and-desist letter to her, ordering her to stop “referencing Britney derogatorily” while promoting her new book, ‘Things I Should Have Said’. Jamie Lynn has made various claims about her experiences with Britney before and during her conservatorship in recent interviews.
Earlier this month, an appearance by Jamie Lynn on ‘Good Morning America’ sparked an angry back and forth between the two sisters on social media, during which Britney refuted claims made by her sibling, and Jamie Lynn denied that her book was about Britney.
“We write with some hesitation because the last thing Britney wants is to bring more attention to your ill-timed book and its misleading or outrageous claims about her”, states the new legal letter, according to Rolling Stone. “Although Britney has not read and does not intend to read your book, she and millions of her fans were shocked to see how you have exploited her for monetary gain”.
He goes on to warn: “Publicly airing false or fantastical grievances is wrong, especially when designed to sell books. It is also potentially unlawful and defamatory”.
“You recently reportedly stated that the book was ‘not about her’”, he concludes. “She takes you at your word and we, therefore, demand that you cease and desist from referencing Britney derogatorily during your promotional campaign. If you fail to do so or defame her, Britney will be forced to consider and take all appropriate legal action”.
