Britney Spears’ legal drama with her father, Jamie Spears, has continued to make headlines amid her indefinite work hiatus, but their ups and downs date back to her childhood.
“Me and my daughter’s relationship has always been strained,” Jamie testified during a June 2019 court hearing.
Growing up, Britney and her mother, Lynne Spears, were thick as thieves, with the matriarch taking her eldest daughter to out-of-state auditions and performances in their native Louisiana while Jamie bounced from job to job and struggled with alcoholism. Lynne considered leaving her husband several times after their July 1975 wedding (and even filed for divorce in December 1979 before withdrawing her petition), but breaking up their family was the last thing she wanted to do.
“When I look back, I guess I could have ended it a lot sooner and maybe saved myself and my son [Bryan] some heartache. But I wouldn’t have my girls, Britney and Jamie Lynn,” the former schoolteacher wrote in her 2008 memoir, Through the Storm. “Plus, it’s almost impossible to say I should have done this or that. At the time, divorcing Jamie did not seem like the right thing to do.”
After Britney’s career took off in 1998, however, her parents’ marriage took a turn for the worse. They divorced in May 2002, and the Grammy winner later called it “the best thing that’s ever happened to my family.”
Jamie remained in Britney’s life after his split from Lynne and was tasked with playing a pivotal role beginning in February 2008, when a Los Angeles court gave him control of his famous daughter’s personal affairs and estate amid her much-publicized breakdown. Although he originally petitioned for the conservatorship to be temporary, it was made permanent that October. The legal arrangement has been in place ever since, despite Britney eventually making a professional comeback, releasing new albums, touring the world, judging a season of The X Factor and raking in nearly $140 million during a four-year Las Vegas residency.
As Britney’s longest-serving conservator — others, like attorney Andrew Wallet and licensed fiduciary Jodi Montgomery, have come and gone over time — Jamie has been credited with essentially saving Britney’s life when she was at her lowest point.
“This is a story of a close family but not a perfect one,” Jamie’s attorney Leon Gladstone said in court in October 2012. “It’s a story of a man who actually wanted nothing more for his daughter than to live and be well. It’s a story of a father who has had to step up and take action that he never thought he would have to take.”
And yet, the Crossroads actress and many people in her inner circle feel that ending the conservatorship is long overdue.
“Britney’s family is at war with each other and it’s all because of the conservatorship,” a source exclusively told Us Weekly in September 2020, noting that Lynne, who briefly reconciled with Jamie in late 2010 but never remarried him, “wants a care plan established that would transition Britney’s personal life out of the conservatorship.”
As the #FreeBritney movement continues to make waves on social media, scroll down to revisit Britney and Jamie’s ups and downs over the years.
Lynne wrote in Through the Storm that Jamie “always enjoyed a beer here and there, but he didn’t start drinking heavily until after Bryan was born” in April 1977. “With every alcohol-soaked episode, our perfect little life began to unstitch, and the knot we had tied with our vows and our love started to work loose, thread by painful thread,” she continued. Jamie eventually went to rehab in 2004 after Britney urged him to seek help.
Courtesy of Britney Spears/Instagram
Lynne and her longtime friend Felicia Culotta took turns traveling with Britney in the late ‘90s after the teen signed a deal with Jive Records. Britney’s agent at the time, Nancy Carson, recalled seeing Jamie around much less, saying in the “Framing Britney Spears” episode of The New York Times Presents in February 2021, “Jamie visited from time to time and was anxious to see this time be worthwhile so that he could justify the money that it was costing to do this.” Former Jive executive Kim Kaiman, meanwhile, said in the documentary, “Her mother would do whatever it took, personally and for the family’s sake, for Britney to be a star. I never talked to her father. The only thing Jamie ever said to me was, ‘My daughter is going to be so rich she’s going to buy me a boat.’”
Courtesy of Britney Spears/Instagram
Jamie was at Britney’s side throughout her 2008 MTV documentary, Britney: For the Record, as she prepared for her comeback after months of personal setbacks. In one particularly memorable scene, the patriarch whipped up his daughter’s favorite comfort food, telling the camera, “Grits is an old Southern tradition. She’s been eating them since she was born. … Everybody else has Wheaties, but Southern girls’ breakfast of champions is cheese grits.”
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In the summer of 2014, the former gym owner bought a video of Britney’s then-boyfriend, David Lucado, kissing and dancing with another woman so that it would not leak online and embarrass his daughter. Britney broke up with Lucado soon after.
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Jamie attended several of the pop star’s concerts during her Las Vegas residency, Britney: Piece of Me, which ran from December 2013 to December 2017.
Courtesy of Britney Spears/Instagram
The former Mouseketeer canceled her planned second Vegas residency, Britney: Domination, in January 2019 after her dad was hospitalized for a ruptured colon. “We’re all so grateful that he came out of it alive, but he still has a long road ahead of him. I had to make the difficult decision to put my full focus and energy on my family at this time. I hope you all can understand,” she wrote via Instagram at the time.
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Multiple sources exclusively told Us in September 2019 that police responded to Jamie’s California condo the month prior after he got into an argument with his grandson Sean Preston and “shook” the then-13-year-old. Britney’s ex-husband Kevin Federline subsequently obtained a restraining order against Jamie that prohibited his former father-in-law from coming near Preston or the former couple’s youngest son, Jayden. While the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office declined to file child abuse charges against Jamie, the incident drove a wedge between Britney and her dad and led Federline to alter his ex-wife’s custodial time. “The incident with Jamie and Preston changed everything,” a source exclusively told Us in December 2020.
Courtesy of Britney Spears/Instagram
Us exclusively reported in April 2020 that Britney “went back home to Louisiana to visit her mom, dad, sister and her nieces” amid the COVID-19 pandemic after initially quarantining in California with her boyfriend, Sam Asghari. The family celebrated Jamie Lynn’s 29th birthday while Britney was in town and also enjoyed “fun, relaxing downtime,” according to a source.
Jamie’s attorney Vivian Thoreen confirmed the news 10 months later, saying on Good Morning America, “Early on in the pandemic, they spent two weeks with other family members, hunkered down in Louisiana, and they spent a lot of time together. Britney and Jamie went on long drives together. They played and worked in the family garden. And every night, Jamie cooked Southern comfort food that the family ate and enjoyed together.”
Courtesy Jamie Lynn Spears/Instagram; Shutterstock (inset)
During her time out of the spotlight, Britney became more involved in her conservatorship. In August 2020, she filed court documents stating that she was “strongly opposed” to Jamie being the conservator of her person and of her estate. She requested that Montgomery, who temporarily replaced Jamie after his November 2019 health scare, permanently oversee Britney’s personal affairs. She also asked that a “qualified corporate fiduciary” take control of her money. Despite his daughter’s requests, Jamie has continued to fight to stay on the case.
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The entertainer’s attorney said during a November 2020 court hearing that Britney had informed him that “she is afraid of her father” and that “she will not perform as long as her father is in charge of her career.” Jamie’s lawyer denied the claim. At the end of the hearing, the judge decided not to suspend Jamie as conservator but approved Bessemer Trust to handle Britney’s estate alongside him.
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The former building contractor told CNN in December 2020 that he had not been on “good terms” with Britney since that August, the same month she said she was “opposed” to his role. “I love my daughter and I miss her very much,” he told the outlet. “When a family member needs special care and protection, families need to step up, as I have done for the last 12-plus years, to safeguard, protect and continue to love Britney unconditionally. I have and will continue to provide unwavering love and fierce protection against those with self-serving interests and those who seek to harm her or my family.”
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Asghari, who has been dating the “Lucky” singer since late 2016, slammed Jamie in February 2021, writing via his Instagram Stories, “I have zero respect for someone trying to control our relationship and constantly throwing obstacles our way. In my opinion Jamie is a total dick.” The personal trainer later told TMZ that “once [Jamie] starts treating his daughter right, then we can be on good terms.”
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The Grammy winner shared her side of the story regarding her father’s role in her conservatorship battle for the first time during a June 2021 court hearing. “It’s my wish and my dream for this to end,” Britney told the judge presiding over the hearing, which she attended virtually. “I’ve lied and told the whole world I’m OK and I’m happy. If I said that enough, maybe I’d become happy. … I’m in shock. I’m traumatized. … I’m so angry it’s insane.”
Britney called her conservatorship “abusive” and admitted she felt “enslaved” by her father during his reign as her conservator. “He loved the control he had over me, one hundred percent,” the singer claimed.
She continued: “I just want my life back. It’s been 13 years and it’s enough. It’s enough and it makes no sense at all … I’m done. I want to sue my family, to be totally honest with you. … Ma’am, I’m not here to be anyone’s slave.”
In July 2021, Us confirmed that Britney and her new lawyer, Matt Rosengart, had submitted paperwork to have Jamie permanently removed from her conservatorship team. Britney's mom, Lynne, seemingly supported the move in a fiery declaration, calling out Jamie's "entirely inappropriate" actions toward their daughter.
"Since this conservatorship has been in place, the relationship between the conservatee and Mr. Spears has dwindled to nothing but fear and hatred of Mr. Spears by the conservatee due to Mr. Spears' behavior, including his complete control over her, his mistrust of her, his coercion of her, his 'bartering' with her over what she can and cannot do for whatever reward or punishment he is willing to mete out, his constant threats, and his decision-making over all aspects of her life," Lynne claimed at the time.
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In August 2021, two months after Britney's bombshell court hearing, Jamie filed court documents agreeing to step down as the conservator of her estate. "Regardless of his formal title, Mr. Spears will always be Ms. Spears' father, he will always love her unconditionally, and he will always look out for her best interests," the docs stated.
At the time, the pop star's lawyer noted in a statement, "We are pleased but not necessarily surprised that Mr. Spears and his lawyer finally recognize that he must be removed. We are disappointed, however, by their ongoing shameful and reprehensible attacks on Ms. Spears and others."
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Britney's attorney filed a supplemental petition on August 30 in response to Jamie agreeing to step down after "a resolution of matters."
According to Rosengart, Jamie is requesting more money, specifically $1,356,293 for his attorney fees and a $500,000 payment to Tri-Star Sports & Entertainment Group in order to leave his role.
"The status quo is no longer tolerable, and Britney Spears will not be extorted," Rosengart wrote in the legal docs. "Mr. Spears’s blatant attempt to barter suspension and removal in exchange for approximately $2 million in payments, on top of the millions already reaped from Ms. Spears’s estate by Mr. Spears and his associates, is a non-starter."
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Jamie was suspended as conservator of his daughter’s estate during a September 2021 hearing, effective immediately. John Zabel was appointed Britney’s temporary conservator until December 31, 2021. The judge also said both legal teams would have to return to court within 30 to 45 days to discuss whether to terminate the conservatorship in its entirety.
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