A judge has approved Britney Spears’ request to hire her own private counsel to represent her in her ongoing conservatorship case.
In the wake of Britney’s damning public testimony last month, her court appointed attorney, Sam Ingham, tendered his resignation. During a hearing on Wednesday, Judge Brenda Penny approved Ingham’s request to remove himself from the case, while allowing Britney to retain her own representation for the first time since the conservatorship was put into place some 13 years ago.
TMZ reports that Britney has already picked Matthew Rosengart to replace Ingham. A one-time federal prosecutor, Rosengart is now a go-to attorney for A-list clients including Madonna, Sean Penn, and Steven Spielberg.
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Britney herself appeared in court on Wednesday and once again spoke out against the conservatorship. She told Judge Penny that she was “extremely scared” of her father Jamie, who remains the sole overseer of the conservatorship. “This conservatorship has allowed my dad to ruin my life,” she said through tears. “I’m here to get rid of my dad and charge him with conservatorship abuse.”
It’s just the last bombshell development to occur since Britney first broke her silence and publicly testified against the conservatorship. During an emotionally wrenching hearing last month, Britney spoke about being barred from marriage and forced to continue using an IUD despite her desire to have more children. She also said she’d been put on lithium against her wishes, and emphasized that, “I truly believe this conservatorship is abusive.”
In addition to her Ingham’s resignation, Britney’s longtime manager and co-conservator have also departed their posts in recent weeks.
However, Jamie Spears remains steadfast in his stance that Britney is incapable of caring for herself, and has promised to provide evidence disputing his daughter’s claims.
