Photo: Kathy Hutchins / Shutterstock
She controls Britney's care.
By Alice Kelly — Written on Jun 30, 2021
Britney Spears' father, Jamie Spears, is casting blame on to his co-conservator, Jodi Montgomery, as he defends himself from claims made by his daughter.
Britney alleged her court-ordered conservatorship had allowed for 13 years of trauma, but Jamie is washing his hands of any blame as he passes all accountability to Montgomery.
In court documents filed on Tuesday, June 29, Jamie's attorney says it is Montgomery who has been in charge of Britney's care and objected to her appointment as permanent conservator.
“Ms. Montgomery has been fully in charge of Ms. Spears’ day-to-day personal care and medical treatment, and Ms. Montgomery has made all decisions related to those matters,” the documents read.
Jamie Spears is blaming Jodi Montgomery for Britney's conservatorship problems.
Jamie made several claims about Montgomery's involvement in the conservatorship, possibly in an attempt to relinquish blame.
However, not all of the claims appear verifiable and Montgomery hit back at his court filing.
Here is some background on Montgomery's role in Britney's conservatorship and the allegations made by Jamie.
Jodi Montgomery is a fiduciary specializing in conservatorship.
Montgomery founded Pais Montgomery Fiduciary in 2011 alongside her husband at the time, Jack Montgomery. Montgomery comes at this career with a background in social work and she has a degree in social welfare from Berkeley.
In her bio on her business website, she says she is "formally trained in social work and strongly committed to meeting the particular needs of conservatees and special needs trust beneficiaries — and protecting them from all forms of physical and financial abuse."
Montgomery became Britney's conservator in 2019.
Brintey's father Jamie had been her primary conservator until 2019 when he asked to take a leave from the role. He cited health issues because he was recovering from a ruptured colon in 2018.
Prior to this, Montgomery had been Britney's care manager but was appointed her temporary conservator in the wake of Jamie's health issues.
As a court-appointed conservator, Montgomery was tasked with overseeing Spears' finances, business dealings, and legal affairs. Montgomery has to report back to the court regularly and detail things like Spears' spending, any contracts she enters, and potentially any decisions about her health care.
Britney has criticized Montgomery's work as her conservator.
In August 2020, Britney "strongly opposed" her father being reinstated as her sole conservator and expressed wishes for Montgomery to be given a permanent role.
However, in her June 2021 testimony, Britney appeared to change her tune as she criticized Montgomery's control.
"I'm talking to you today because I feel like Jodi is starting to kind of take it too far with me," she said. "She made me feel like my dad does — very similar behavior and my dad's — but just a different dynamic."
Jamie Spears blames Montgomery for Britney's lack of control.
In her testimony, Britney alleged that she had been prevented from removing her IUD and having a baby, and was told by her conservators that she could not marry her boyfriend, Sam Asghari.
However, Jamie Spears argued in recent court documents that he has not attempted to control his daughter's relationships, claiming he gave his blessing when Britney got engaged to ex-boyfriend, Jason Trawick, in 2013.
Jamie still acts as conservator of Britney's estate but claimed he had been cut off from speaking to his daughter for the past two years. However, his own lawyer claimed last year that the pair had quarantined together at the beginning of the pandemic.
Britney's testimony also made references to forced mental health treatment in early 2019, before Montgomery was her conservator.
Montgomery hit back at Jamie's claims.
In a statement posted to her company's website, a spokesperson for Montgomery denied Jamie and Britney's claims that she had prevented the singer from marrying and expressed her commitment to Britney's wellbeing.
"I can state unequivocally that Jodi Montgomery has been a tireless advocate for Britney and for her well-being," the statement reads. "Ms. Montgomery has tirelessly acted in Britney’s best interests with the approval of her doctors and the oversight of the Court."
Alice Kelly is a writer living in Brooklyn, New York. Catch her covering all things social justice, news, and entertainment. Keep up with her Twitter for more.