Britney Spears, the American pop singer, filed a third request on Monday for the immediate removal of her father Jamie Spears from her ongoing conservatorship following revelations that her private communications were recorded by him in the documentary Controlling Britney Spears.
The singer’s legal team accused her father of crossing “unfathomable lines” after The New York Times documentary, released on Friday, alleged that she has been secretly surveilled through her 13-year conservatorship under him.
Controlling Britney Spears is a follow up to FX and Hulu’s Emmy-nominated documentary, Framing Britney Spears, also presented by The New York Times. It claims that the singer was recorded in her bedroom and that conversations with her children as well as boyfriend were taped. The documentary also alleges that texts and other materials from her phone were passed on to her father.
The new filing on Monday also states that as per the documentary, conversations between Spears and her lawyer were also recorded. Since California is a “two-party” state that requires the consent of both parties for an audio recording, the allegations warrant a serious investigation, the filing further said.
“Unauthorized recording or monitoring of Britney’s private communications – especially attorney-client communications, which are a sacrosanct part of the legal system – represent an unconscionable and disgraceful violation of her privacy rights and a striking example of the deprivation of her civil liberties. Placing a listening device in Britney’s bedroom would be particularly horrifying, and corroborates so much of her compelling, poignant testimony,” said Spears’ lawyer Mathew Rosengart in a statement to Vulture.
The five-page filing also says that there is now “overwhelming evidence” to remove the singer’s father from the conservatorship and notes that each day that Jamie Spears remains in the position, is not only toxic but causes Spears “anguish and pain.” Rosengart’s filing further states that the singer “will no longer be bullied or extorted, nor will she further tolerate her father’s abuse, with its apparent misogynistic underpinnings.”
The Vulture report also mentions that Spears took to her Instagram account and mentioned that parts of the documentary are “untrue.” However, the post has since been deleted.
It is notable that when The New York Times released the documentary Framing Britney in March, the singer had said that she was “embarrassed” after watching it.
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The 39-year-old pop singer has been in a conservatorship under her father since 2008. She entered into the conservatorship or guardianship with her father following several public meltdowns. It gave him control over her financial affairs, estate, and her personal life.
After opposing all her attempts to remove him from the conservatorship for a long time, the singer’s father Jamie Spears filed a petition to end the conservatorship in a surprise move on September 7.
The matter to end the conservatorship is scheduled to be heard in the Los Angeles Superior Court on Wednesday.
Another upcoming documentary titled Britney vs Spears, based on her conservatorship, is scheduled to stream on Netflix from Tuesday.