Britney Spears will address a Los Angeles courtroom directly today for the first time in her conservatorship battle.
Back in April, Judge Brenda Penny set a status hearing for 23 June following a request from the pop star’s lawyer Samuel D Ingham.
The hearing will take place at 1:30pm local time, and it is not clear what matter Britney will be discussing in court.
Just hours before her court hearing, a New York Times report claimed Britney has been quietly pushing for the conservatorship to end for years.
According to confidential documents viewed by the publication, which dated back to 2016, the singer felt the conservatorship had become “an oppressive and controlling tool against her”.
The singer was placed under a conservatorship after she suffered an alleged breakdown back in 2008.
A conservatorship is granted to those who are incapable of making decisions, such as people with mental disabilities.
The arrangement put her estate, financial assets, and some personal assets under the control of her father Jamie, and lawyer Andrew Wallet – who resigned from the role early last year.
The 39-year-old’s conservatorship has been under review since last year, after she accused her father of forcing her to enter a mental health facility.
In November last year, the songstress tried to have her father removed as her conservator, but her request was denied.
Instead, a judge named wealth management firm the Bessemer Trust as co-conservator of her estate, alongside her father.
In February this year, Jamie failed to regain sole control of his daughter’s estate.
According to the Times report, Britney told a court investigator in 2016 that the conservatorship gave her father authority over who she befriended and dated, how she designed her kitchen and what her weekly allowance was.
A representative for Jamie’s lawyer declined to comment on the New York Times report on Tuesday.
Britney’s ongoing legal battle dominated headlines earlier this year following the release of the documentary Framing Britney Spears.
Produced by the The New York Times, the film followed the singer’s rise to stardom, and the events that led to her conservatorship battle.
The film shed light on the #FreeBritney movement, and featured interviews with lawyers involved in her conservatorship.
It also showed the misogyny and media scrutiny the pop star faced throughout her career, with many viewers describing the documentary as “heartbreaking” and “shocking”.
