Britney Spears' Conservatorship Case: The Origins

By Sahithi Lingampalli, Edited by Geethi Tarra & Harshivir Chahal, Layout by Aathmika Radhachandran, Art by Sahithi Lingampalli, & Blogged by Kavya Gurunath

Britney Spears, no introduction necessary, [is]...one of the biggest names in the pop industry, with a net worth of $60 million (Adams). Now, she’s fighting to gain control over everything that’s rightfully hers — but why did her father get Britney’s conservatorship in the first place?

Britney’s Rise to Fame

Britney Spears began dancing and singing when she was two, and attended the Professional Performing Arts School, where she started appearing in commercials.. At 11 years old, Britney made it onto The All New Mickey Mouse Club cast which was cancelled in 1995 due to disagreement between Disney and ABC. Britney, however, was determined to pursue her career, and created a demo tape that she sent to Jive Records.Two years later, at 16, she released her ever-so-famous hit single, “...Baby One More Time” (Farrow). Even though it was under controversy for Britney’s ‘provocative schoolgirl’ vibe in the song, the controversy helped it become a massive bop (Tikkanen). By the time the whole album, ...Baby One More Time, was released, the song was #1 in the US, and had sold over 10 million copies. Britney had reached fame at a young age, and disaster was about to follow.

Golden Breakup

As Britney’s popularity grew, so did her wealth. She built her mother a 4.5 million dollar mansion, and in 2002, finally convinced her mother, Lynne Spears, to divorce her abusive father, Jamie Spears, who had trouble with alcohol addiction. Britney told People Magazine it was the “the best thing that’s ever happened to my family" (Farrow). Around this time, Britney and Justin Timberlake, who had been dating, broke up. Britney was devastated, as part of her public identity was being in this golden couple with Timberlake. To deal with the breakup, Britney spent more time out with her friends, Lindsay Lohan and Paris Hilton, as well as filling up her schedule with as many dance rehearsals, studio sessions, photo shoots, and stadium performances as she could (Farrow). Her makeup artist, Julianne Kaye, told The New Yorker that Britney was frequently crying, and even saying, “I just want to be normal.” To cope, Britney relaxed by partying, in which she smoked weed, snorted cocaine, and took marijuana. This would pave her path to drug addiction.

Wedding Bells

Britney met Kevin Federline, a dancer, in 2004. She got married to him within six months, and initially did not secure a prenuptial agreement (Farrow). Her mother did not want the marriage to be made legal, as Britney had a huge fortune, so a wedding contract was signed after the ceremony. Britney was dying to have a family; she wrote on her website: ““I’ve had a career since I was 16, have traveled around the world & back and even kissed Madonna! The only thing I haven’t done so far is experience the closest thing to God and that’s having a baby. I can’t wait!” 10 months after she got married, Britney had her first son, Sean Preston. 1½ years later, she had her second son, Jayden James. During this time, the paparazzi ambushed her any chance they got, hoping to take advantage of her weak emotional state, trying to provoke her and get a reaction. Britney often cried, and in hindsight, her family speculates that she could have been suffering from postpartum depression. Spears filed for divorce with her husband two months after Jayden was born.

Dealing with a Divorce

Kevin requested full custody of both their kids; Jayden was still being nursed at that time. Britney was depressed for most of her day, crying often, and was subject to the paparazzi’s wrath. They plastered images of Britney breaking down on tabloids, with provocative headlines such as “Mommy’s Crying,” and Kevin barely received any attention. Unable to handle everything happening around her, Britney compulsively shaved her head, and five days later, attacked a paparazzo’s car with an umbrella (Farrow). These two events gave her public image a status of crazy, leading her to frequently turn to drugs and alcohol. Her friends suggested that if she wanted to see her kids more often, she should go to a rehab facility. Britney checked in for one day, and checked right back out. This was used in her custody hearing, and Kevin got primary custody of her children, with Britney receiving four days of monitored visitation a week.

Conservatorship Cues

Around this time, Jamie, Britney’s father, was getting close to a man by the name of Lou Taylor, who was thinking of putting Lindsay Lohan, one of Britney’s close friends, under a conservatorship. In Early 2008, Britney was meeting with her kids as part of her four day allowance. When the time came to an end, Britney didn't want to let go of Sean and Jayden. A bodyguard had arrived to take the kids back to Kevin's place. After some deliberation, Britney handed him Sean, but took Jayden and locked herself in her bathroom. According to The New Yorker, every extra minute she spent with Sean and Jayden violated the custody agreement. Kevin's lawyer called the police and fire department, which in turn, called an ambulance. Within minutes, it was like a standoff — helicopters circling overhead, firemen armed with axes, police swarming the inside of the house. The bathroom door was broken into, and firemen seized Jayden. A gurney was brought in, and Britney was strapped in — even though she was not the slightest bit hurt. It was later revealed that she was strapped in under a 5150, an emergency psychiatric hold, in which a person having a mental-health episode can be involuntarily hospitalized (Farrow).

This incident gave Kevin full custody of the children, and Britney's visitation rights were revoked. Britney's housekeeper remarked, “As a mom, I can tell you: Britney was a good mom. She didn’t want to hurt or do anything wrong with her kids. No. I was there, and I know all she wanted was to have her kids at least another night." Lou and Jamie decided that they definitely wanted the conservatorship now, to get Britney’s life under control. A couple of months later, another 5150 was called in, by Britney’s mother, for fear that someone was trying to “commit to Britney.” Britney was strapped into a gurney yet again, and taken to UCLA’s hospital.

After this event, conservatorship proceedings happened very quickly. The hearing finished within ten minutes, and none of it was discussed with Britney. Jamie, Britney’s father, shared conservatorship duties with Andrew Wallet, a man appointed by the court. Spears’s cars were disabled, the phone lines cut, and her medications were crushed and given to Britney in her food. Britney’s entire life was under control over her father, all because she wanted more time with the child she never got to spend enough with.

References

Adams, J. (2021, June 25). How much has 13 years under conservatorship cost Britney Spears? MarketWatch. https://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-much-has-13-years-under-conservatorship-cost-britney-spears-11624654464.

Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. (2021, July 15). Britney Spears. Encyclopædia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Britney-Spears.

Tolentino, R. F. and J. (2021, July 3). Britney Spears's Conservatorship Nightmare. The New Yorker. https://www.newyorker.com/news/american-chronicles/britney-spears-conservatorship-nightmare.

By Sahithi Lingampalli