Britney Spears' professional co-conservator files to resign after explosive testimony

The professional co-conservator for Britney Spears’ estate filed a petition to resign Thursday following the pop star’s explosive testimony last week in which she called the situation abusive.

Bessemer Trust filed documents in Los Angeles Superior Court asking to be removed from its position as co-conservator with her father, James “Jamie” Spears. The financial institution cited Britney Spears’ desire to end the conservatorship during her June 23 testimony in its decision to step away from its role.

In the petition, Bessemer said it entered into the conservatorship because it "relied on the representations of the parties that the ongoing Conservatorship was voluntary." But now Bessemer is aware that Britney Spears "objects to the continuance of her Conservatorship and desires to terminate the Conservatorship" and the company respects her wishes, the filing said.

The filing comes just a day after the court rejected a petition to have Jamie Spears removed from his role in his daughter’s estate. He was temporarily made the sole executor of his daughter’s estate in 2019 after his co-conservator, Andrew Wallet, resigned.

Britney Spears' attorney, Samuel D. Ingham III, filed a petition last year to have Jamie Spears removed, saying that his client was afraid of her father and would rather have a professional handle her case. He also said the singer would refuse to perform so long as her father was in charge of her estate.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Brenda Penny instead assigned Bessemer Trust as Jamie Spears’ co-conservator and Jodi Montgomery as Britney Spears' conservator of the person.

In rare public testimony last week, Britney Spears called her conservatorship “abusive” and asked the judge to release her from the legal case without further medical evaluation. The 39-year-old singer did not file an official petition with the court that day.

She alleged that she has been subjected to numerous psychiatric evaluations and medications and that she has been traumatized by her father. Britney Spears told the court she didn't speak up publicly because she felt no one would believe her.

"I haven’t been back to court in a long time because I don’t feel like I was heard on any level," Britney Spears, who has been under conservatorship since 2008, told the court.

Singer Britney Spears arrives for the premiere of Sony Pictures' "Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood" at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, on July 22, 2019. Valerie Macon / AFP - Getty Images file

She went on to say that everything that was done to her had to be approved by her father, who "100,000 percent loved" that he had control. The singer alleged that her previous therapist abused his power, that her management forced her to perform for years on end without a break and that she was forced into a $60,000 a month treatment facility by her father.

Britney Spears also told the court that she wanted to get married and have another child, but that her conservators would not allow her to have her intrauterine device removed.

In a response to her testimony filed Wednesday, Jamie Spears said he was "concerned about the management and care of his daughter" and that Montgomery did "not reflect her wishes." He added that Montgomery was the sole conservator who oversaw the decisions related to the singer's personal life and medical treatment since her appointment.

Jamie Spears has vehemently denied the claims, saying that he only has his daughter’s best interests at heart.

He asked the court to investigate the claims that his daughter raised while asking the judge to end her conservatorship.

Lauriann Wright, an attorney representing Montgomery, said in a statement that her client "has been a tireless advocate for Britney and for her well-being," adding that if Spears wants any issue brought up to the court, Montgomery "is and has always been ready, willing, and able to do so."