Jamie Spears’ Lawyer Tries To 'Defend’ The Britney Spears Conservatorship, Claiming “People Have It So Wrong"
In the wake of the ongoing reaction to the Framing Britney Spears documentary, a lawyer representing Jamie Spears has appeared on Good Morning America to defend the infamous conservatorship.
Attorney Vivian Lee Thoreen virtually appeared on the show to talk about the ongoing legal battles between Britney Spears and her father. A court-appointed conservatorship that began in 2008 put Jamie is in control of Spears' assets, business affairs and estate. Spears has unsuccessfully tried to contest the conservatorship in recent months.
Thoreen, responding to the documentary's exploration of the highly-scrutinised conservatorship, and the widely popular #FreeBritney movement, stated that "every story wants to have a villain, but people have it so wrong here." She claims that Jamie "wants what's best for Britney".
Thoreen states that the conservatorship has been successful in turning Britney's finances around because of the "collaboration" between Jamie and his daughter.
She adds, "When she wants to live her life the way she wants, like a normal person, he has collaborated with her to do that as well."
GMA's Amy Robach pressed Thoreen for details; specifically around statements from Britney's legal team that she was "afraid" of her father. In November 2020, Britney's attorney Samuel D. Ingham III reportedly told the court during a hearing on the conservatorship, "My client has informed me that she is afraid of her father." He went on to add, "She will not perform again if her father is in charge of her career."
When asked about this, Thoreen's answer stated that Britney and Jamie had spent a lot of time together in 2020, including at the start of the pandemic when they, with other family members, "hunkered down in Louisiana". Throughout their time, which included "long drives together" and Jamie cooking for the family every night, Thoreen claimed that "Britney never expressed those words to her father."
"She's never asked him to step aside," she added.
Robach then pushed harder, stating it was "hard to understand why Britney's lawyer took it a step further and said that Britney was scared of her father."
Thoreen answered by repeating the exact same phrase, "Britney never said those things to Jamie. She never asked him to step aside."
Thoreen's deadpan expression and slow, repetitive answers were immediately highlighted by #FreeBritney advocates, including one Twitter user who commented that she spent the interview "trying to remember what her phony script said".
Another criticised Thoreen's attempt to "manipulate the conversation by NOT answering the questions".
When asked about the #FreeBritney movement, Thoreen didn't directly respond, instead asserting the conservatorship was first initiated because "Britney needed help". Earlier in the interview, she stated that Jamie had "saved Britney's life", and he'd "rescued his daughter from a life threatening situation."
Robach commented how Britney could easily put the questions and concerns to bed, by publicly stating she was happy for Jamie to continue the conservatorship and that she doesn't need to "be freed". She then asked Thoreen why Britney hasn't put such a statement out there.
"You'll have to ask to ask Britney," Thoreen replies.
The only comments Britney has publicly made that seem to address the happenings since Framing Britney Spears is when she tweeted a video of her performing "Toxic" from several years back. "I am taking the time to learn and be a normal person," she wrote.
She followed on by saying, "Remember, no matter what we think we know about a person's life it is nothing compared to the actual person living behind the lens!"
Watch the interview below.
Written by Dani Leever, a writer and homosexual pop culture enthusiast. Find their words at @danileever or catch their gay DJ drag adventures at @djgaydad.
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