Britney Spears' Lawyer Wants Out

Samuel D. Ingham III requests to resign
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 7, 2021 2:21 AM CDT
Updated Jul 7, 2021 5:01 AM CDT
Britney Spears' Lawyer Wants Out
A Britney Spears supporter holds a sign outside a court hearing concerning the pop singer's conservatorship at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse, Wednesday, June 23, 2021, in Los Angeles.   (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

First a co-conservator asked to exit, then her longtime manager stepped down, and now Britney Spears' court-appointed lawyer wants out. Samuel Ingham III filed paperwork in Los Angeles Superior Court on Tuesday requesting the court appoint the pop star a new lawyer and announcing he would resign from the case as soon as that happens, the AP reports. NPR notes that when Spears addressed the court in a bombshell hearing on June 23, she said Ingham discouraged her from speaking out, and that while they had developed a relationship over the years, she hadn't "really had the opportunity by my own self to actually handpick my own lawyer by myself. And I would like to be able to do that." Spears also said she never knew she could request to end the conservatorship, and sources tell TMZ that Ingham is upset about that and claims he'd informed her of that option.

The New Yorker recently cited sources who claimed Ingham is more loyal to Spears' father, and the conservatorship itself than he is to his client. But the AP notes that he became more of a "vocal advocate" for Spears starting last year, when he told the court she was afraid of her father and would not start working again as long as Jamie Spears was in charge of her affairs. A petition to terminate the conservatorship still has not been filed, however, and sources tell Page Six that Spears herself isn't sure why Ingham has not done so. They say she has reiterated to him since her court appearance that she wants him to file the paperwork. Meanwhile, the judge in the case on Friday granted Bessemer Trust's request to step down as co-conservator, effective immediately, People reports. Sources tell TMZ more resignations are expected. (More Britney Spears stories.)

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