Britney Spears’ attorney has asked to depose her father and made a number of discovery demands, including all documents “electronic surveillance” of the singer while under her father’s power, according to a filing made available Tuesday.
The 110-page filing submitted to the Los Angeles County Superior Court by Mathew Rosengart includes a notice to depose James “Jamie” Spears on Oct. 20, the same week Jamie Spears replaced his previous attorney with an experienced litigator, Alex Weingarten. It is unclear whether the deposition proceeded.
Rosengart has previously accused Jamie Spears of filing to terminate his daughter's conservatorship to evade a deposition and reiterated that in his latest filing.
"It is of no moment, presently, whether Mr. Spears’s reversal was motivated by a desire to bolster his reputation or to avoid his deposition or responding to the outstanding discovery served on him in August," Rosengart added in a footnote.
Weingarten in a court filing Monday said that Jamie Spears "is committed to full and complete transparency" and will cooperate in transferring all files regarding the estate to Rosengart.
"Jamie has nothing to hide regarding his administration of Britney’s estate and will therefore hide nothing," the document by Weingarten and another attorney, Eric Bakewell, says.
Exhibits in the Rosengart's filing provide insight on what Rosengart has been working on since the last Sept. 29 hearing, when Jamie Spears was suspended as conservator.
On Oct. 1, Rosengart requested discovery for any and all documents and communications pertaining to “the electronic surveillance, monitoring, cloning, or recording of the activity of Britney Jean Spears, personal telephone, according to one exhibit. It also goes on to ask for similar items in regard to any recording or listening device in the home or bedroom of Britney Jean Spears.
The filing appears to refer to The New York Times reporting in September alleging that Jamie Spears had recording devices planted in his daughter's home and monitored privileged communications with her previous attorney.
Jamie Spears’ former attorney Vivian Thoreen said at the time that her client “does not answer to the court of public opinion; he answers to a court of law, the probate court.”
“All of his actions were well within the parameters of the authority conferred upon him by the court,” Thoreen said. “His actions were done with the knowledge and consent of Britney, her court-appointed attorney, and/or the court.”
There were also significant requests for discovery, the exchange of information in legal cases, such as any communications, contracts, and documents regarding the conservatorship. This includes communications and payments made to Lou Taylor and Robin Greenhill, who worked with Britney Spears while she was under management with Tri Star Sports and Entertainment Group.
Rosengart has taken issue with Jamie Spears’ handling of his daughter’s finances, accusing him of mismanaging her estate and profiting off the conservatorship.
Representatives for Jamie Spears have repeatedly denied allegations of wrongdoing over the years and continue to do so, both in the press and in court. The court has approved Jamie Spears' salary as conservator through accounting requests, and in filings he has attested that he continues “to perform services to protect and administer Ms. Spears’ estate in good faith and in her best interests.”
Last week's filing also formally joins Jamie Spears' request to terminate the conservatorship. According to a footnote, Jamie Spears’ new attorney told Rosengart in an email on Oct. 22 that as far as his client is concerned, “the conservatorship is done and can be terminated immediately.”
“Ms. Spears has made her wishes known about ending the conservatorship she has endured for so long and she has pleaded with this Court to 'let her have her life back,' without an evaluation, recently attending two Court hearings and asking this Court directly to end the conservatorship," the filing said. "It is respectfully submitted—with the consent of all parties—that the time has come."
It’s an expected move from Rosengart, who indicated in September that he anticipated her being freed from the legal arrangement on her Nov. 12 hearing date.
Jamie Spears was suspended as conservator at Britney Spears’ last hearing in September, and will possibly be formally removed later this month. Legal experts previously told NBC News that because Britney Spears’ father asked for termination, his removal would likely make the petition moot and would need to be acted upon by her attorney.
In an unrelated court filing that deals with attorneys' fees, lawyers for Britney Spears' mother said she played a key role in pushing the conservatorship to its possible end.
That document, filed Monday, says that Lynne Spears in 2019 sought legal help about a restrictive existence of "microscopic control," which was described as a crisis being endured by her daughter, and demanded a review of the conservatorship.
That filing says Lynne Spears and her attorneys "have contributed to and achieved Lynne's mission of breaking the restrictions imposed by the conservatorship, removing Jamie as conservator and have pushed toward the goal of ultimately terminating the entire conservatorship."
Britney Spears’ conservatorship is scheduled to return to court Nov. 12, when it is anticipated that Los Angeles County Superior Court Brenda Penny will rule on whether to terminate the conservatorship. A subsequent hearing to look at accounting in the conservatorship is scheduled for December.
Phil Helsel contributed.
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