- A hearing has been set for 23 June after Britney Spears' lawyer said she wished to "address the court directly" over her conservatorship.
- Britney Spears' father, Jamie Spears, has been in control of her finances since 2008 following her public breakdown.
- Now, her lawyer says, there have been "last minute developments" involving Britney resulting in the request.
Britney Spears has requested to speak in court in the legal battle over her father's control of her affairs, her attorney, Sam Ingham said on Tuesday.
The 39-year-old pop star is the subject of the #FreeBritney campaign - her adoring fans believe the guardianship in place since 2008 should be ended, but Britney has rarely spoken directly about the issue herself.
READ MORE | #FreeBritney: Everything you need to know to join the movement
A Los Angeles judge set a 23 June hearing following a request from her lawyer. He said she would like the judge to set a status hearing in order for her to "address the court directly". He asked that the date be set on an "expedited basis" and said there have been "last minute developments" involving Britney, but did not divulge more.
Interest in Britney's legal case exploded following the February release of the documentary Framing Britney Spears, which chronicled the highly publicised breakdown that led to her father's long-standing legal guardianship over her finances.
Spears filed last year to remove her father Jamie Spears from the conservatorship and give sole power over her estate to a financial institution. Her court-appointed lawyer said she was "afraid" of her father.
A judge ruled in February that both Spears' father and Bessemer Trust would oversee the pop star's finances, denying Jamie Spears' bid to keep sole power to delegate investments, though the case is ongoing.
Britney said she was "embarrassed" by her portrayal in the documentary, in which fans say she is essentially being held prisoner and claim she has been sending coded pleas for help.
Jamie Spears' lawyers say he has done an excellent job of managing his daughter's finances. Vivian Thoreen, who also appeared in the Framing Britney Spears documentary, said he plans to sign the order officially appointing Bessemer Trust as co-conservator of the estate imminently.
The news comes after Britney was seen attending a wedding with boyfriend, Sam Asghari recently. A source tell E! News Britney's "eager to get out and do stuff", but was previously unable to because of both the pandemic and "restrictions" set by Jamie.
"Her mom [Lynne Spears] has been helping her try to change her situation and to have more freedom to do the things she wants to do. This was something that was important to Britney and she got to do it," the insider says.