What Is Conservatorship? Britney Spears’ Father Being Investigated On Court Order

Everyone responsible for managing singer Britney Spears’ financial affairs, medical care and personal life will be subjected to a “thorough investigation,” according to a court order.

The Blast, which obtained a copy of the court order, reported that a California judge has appointed a probate court investigator to take a look at “all the players” involved in the 37-year-old pop star’s conservatorship case and put together a report to be presented at the singer’s next hearing in September. The last court hearing was on Friday.

Who is a conservator?

According to Merriam Webster, the term conservator means “a person, official, or institution designated to take over and protect the interests of an incompetent.”

The legal definition of the term is mostly similar, with a few details added. “Conservators have court-ordered authority and responsibility to manage the affairs of those who can no longer make their own decisions about finances or health care… If a court appoints someone to take care of financial matters, that person is usually called a ‘conservator of the estate,’ while a person in charge of medical and personal decisions is a ‘conservator of the person,’” according to Nolo, a California-based publisher which has been publishing do-it-yourself legal guides since 1971.

A conservator is appointed if the incapacitated person has not signed durable powers of attorney for finances and health care to a specific person or entity. In that circumstance, family members can request a court to appoint a conservator or guardian. An open hearing is held before the appointment is made. After being appointed a conservator, the individual is required to make regular accountings which must be approved by the court. The removal of a conservator can be done by an order of the court, upon the petition of the conservatee or relatives, or for failure to perform his or her duties.

Britney Spears’ conservatorship case

Conservatorship for Spears was enacted in 2008, following her public breakdown and subsequent hospitalization in 2007, the Daily Mail reported.

The recent order came amid growing allegations against the singer’s team, including her father, Jamie Spears, of deliberately overworking the singer during her Las Vegas residency concert, with 32 shows planned from Feb. 13 to Aug. 17, which was postponed Jan. 4 due to her struggles with mental health. Her manager, Larry Rudolph, however, rubbished the rumors, saying Spears was the one who wanted to keep working.

Although the singer was supposed to resume her rehearsals for the Britney: Domination Las Vegas residency, it has been put on hold as Rudolph cast doubts on whether she will ever be performing on stage.

“As the person who guides her career – based on the information I and all of the professionals who work with her are being told on a need-to-know basis – from what I have gathered it's clear to me she should not be going back to do this Vegas residency, not in the near future and possibly never again,” he told TMZ on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, her fans have started a “#FreeBritney” movement on Twitter, with the aim of liberating the singer from her conservatorship – a campaign that her manager said there was no need for.

“I understand how much these fans love her and support her and I love that,” Rudolph told Variety. “The part that concerns me is that it has no factual basis. The personal issues that Britney is dealing with are highly complicated and the conservatorship is there for a reason. The courts of the State of California take this very seriously. I hope the people allow her to have her private time.”

The investigator appointed by the court will conduct extensive interviews with all the people involved in the conservatorship case, including guardians, conservators, doctors and even law enforcement officials who have had contact with the singer in the past or have information regarding the case. In addition, her medical and financial records, including custody agreements and even contractual obligations like the ones she signed during Las Vegas residency will be reviewed.