Britney Spears has asked a court not to reinstate her father, Jamie Spears, to a role in which he had control over many aspects of her life and career, the BBC reports.
Jamie Spears temporarily stepped aside from overseeing his daughter's personal affairs in 2019, it's reported, citing health problems of his own. He has been her legal conservator for 12 years due to concerns surrounding the singer's mental health.
But fans have long speculated that Britney may be suffering due to the conservatorship and lately that speculation has arguably reached a new high watermark in prevalence. Spears was first placed under a conservatorship by her father back in 2008 after suffering a series of mental breakdowns, which necessitated medical intervention.
The hashtag "#FreeBritney" has subsequently been making the rounds on social media.
A court document filed to the Superior Court of California in Los Angeles says that"Britney is strongly opposed to James' return as conservator of her person."
The document states that the singer is in favor of the role itself, which she said "rescued her from a collapse, exploitation by predatory individuals and financial ruin," and enabled her to "regain her position as a world class entertainer".
Spears now wants her manager, Jodi Montgomery, to assume the role. Montgomery temporarily took over from Jamie Spears during his absence. The singer wants Montgomery to become her father's permanent replacement when the conservatorship is up for extension again - after August 22.
Britney Spears' lawyer said he was anticipating that Jamie Spears would contest the request not to reinstate him to the role.
The singer's brother recently discussed the conservatorship while speaking on the As Not Seen on TV Podcast.
"She’s been in this thing for quite some time now. Obviously there was a need for it in the beginning," Bryan Spears explained. "Now they’ve made some changes and all we can do is hope for the best."
He said that some fans believe his sister is being "held against her will in some capacity," but insisted that the conservatorship has been "a great thing" for their family and said they "keep hoping for the best".
"We kind of came together and not everybody agreed with it either; everyone had their own opinion like, maybe we should do it this way or that way," he continued. "But at the end I think we made the right choice."
Bryan went onto say that their father Jamie has "done the best he could, given the situation he was put in", and said that the had to "work together as a family to keep it all going."
"One person might be on stage and doing this, but it’s a sacrifice from everybody," he added. "Everyone is putting in, to some degree, a little bit to keep everything going."
You can watch the entire interview here:Bryan Spears went on to claim that he and Britney "speak constantly", continuing:
"She’s always wanted to get out of it. It’s very frustrating to have. Whether someone’s coming in peace to help or coming in with an attitude, having someone constantly tell you to do something has got to be frustrating. She’s wanted to get out of it for quite some time."