Britney Spears’ fight to end conservatorship spotlights efforts to reform state laws

The extraordinary case of American singer, songwriter, and dancer, Britney Spears, who has recently ousted her father, Jamie Spears, from the conservatorship, has raised tonnes of questions over its legal aspects. The legal fight between Spears and her father took more than 13 years for the "Princess of Pop" to finally be free of conservatorship.

But though it took over a decade, the case led to major changes in the US conservatorship laws. According to US law, the court has the power to appoint a conservator-- a guardian or a protector-- to manage the financial affairs and/or daily life of another person due to old age or physical or mental limitations. As per law, a conservator can be a family member, a close friend, or a court-appointed professional. However, the law has been under the wrath of die-hard fans of the acclaimed American singer after she took to social media platforms to narrate the ordeal she had been allegedly facing since it was slapped early in 2007.

Meanwhile, after a historic decision yielded by the Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Brenda Penny, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a set of reforms implied by the consciousness created by Spears’ legal fight on Thursday. On the other hand, Mexico formed an independent inspection method to manage how conservatorships are being handled.

The scrutiny will look after the conservator's decisions related to bank accounts. Meanwhile, Oregon has ensured that anyone placed under a guardian gets free legal help. According to the new law, it will provide people assigned under conservatorship to determine their own lawyers. Notably, in the case of the pop singer, it took her 13 years to choose an attorney of her choice. 

Recent developments and social media outcry force changes in conservatorship law

It is worth mentioning that California legislators had passed a set of reforms to the state’s conservatorship system back in 2006. However, the recession in 2008, had forced reforms to take a "decade long nap". At that time, the court had cited fund issues behind the non-implementation of changes. Interestingly, the same year Britney was placed in conservatorship after suffering a psychic health crisis. However, the recent developments and the social media outcry caught the attention of Congress. Her case led the Senate Judiciary Committee to ponder over the decade-old conservatorship laws.

The system "is failing people from every walk of life, whether they are a global superstar whose struggles, unfortunately, play out in public or a family unsure of how to take care of an elderly parent,” said Evan Low, a Democrat who introduced the bill after watching the recent documentary “Controlling Britney Spears." Low added, "This bill saw unanimous, bipartisan support throughout the process because it's painfully clear that we can and should do better."

(With inputs from AP, Image: Instagram/ANI)