Capacity
In early February 2008, Britney Spears was being involuntarily held at U.C.L.A. Medical Center because her psychiatrist deemed Britney to be a danger to herself or others. Her dad, Jamie, had just gotten Judge Reva Goetz to grant him a temporary conservatorship over Britney. However, his attorneys needed a key document to seal the deal. Checking the "dementia" box on the conservatorship form was not quite enough to meet the court's standards for giving Jamie full legal and physical control of his daughter and her property.
The orders for the conservatorship, as well as court-appointed counsel, all hinged on whether Britney had the mental capacity to care for herself, manage her own money and property, and choose her own lawyer. A capacity declaration from a physician was the primary basis for determining a proposed conservatee's mental capacities. These reports would be sealed from the general public to protect a proposed conservatee's medical privacy. Although sealed documents are unavailable for public access, every document filed with the Court is logged in the public record.
The initial application for conserving Britney was submitted to Los Angeles Superior Court on Friday. On Monday, the conservatorship team had another hearing to complete the conservatorship process. They worked throughout the weekend to get a doctor’s report about Britney’s mental capacity.
On Monday, attorney Geraldine Wyle explained her efforts to secure a capacity declaration from someone other than Dr. Deborah Nadel, who was reportedly treating Britney at the time.
"In the early afternoon of Saturday, February 2, 2008, I contacted Dr. James Long, a psychiatrist who had treated Britney at some point in 2007 and has had some reporting function to the family law court, the details of which I am unaware. I informed Dr. Long of the orders appointing temporary conservators and letters of temporary conservatorship for both Britney's estate and person and told him that, while Dr. Long was under no order to provide a capacity declaration, Mr. Spears had been informed by the Court that he needed to provide a capacity declaration so that the Court could make necessary determinations relating to the conservatorships. I informed Dr. Long that I would try to reach him over the weekend. I left a message on Dr. Long's office voice mail on the evening of Saturday, February 2, 2008 and then paged him late in the morning on Sunday, February 3, 2008. Dr. Long promptly returned the page and told me that he had been instructed by his attorney not to discuss the matter with me. I requested that Dr. Long ask his attorney to call me and provided my telephone number at the hotel at which I am staying. I received a telephone message from the hotel receptionist stating that Dr. Long had called the main number and asked the receptionist to give me the message that neither Dr. Long nor his counsel may speak with me."
Dr. Long’s rejection on late Sunday morning gave the conservatorship attorneys around 24 hours—before the hearing on Monday at 1:30 p.m.—to find an accredited doctor, have them meet with Britney to perform an evaluation, write up a capacity declaration, and file it at Stanley Mosk Courthouse.
The declarations that were filed on Monday, February 4 came from Britney’s dad Jamie, and his attorneys: Geraldine Wyle, Vivian Thoreen, and Jeryll Cohen. They hadn't managed to get a doctor’s capacity declaration to the courthouse on time.
Attorney Adam Streisand, whom Britney had called to help her over the weekend, recounted that morning in the documentary Framing Britney Spears.
"The day I went to court for her, the judge said, 'I've got a medical report, and you haven't seen it, Mr. Streisand, and I'm not gonna show it to you. And it shows that she's not capable of retaining counsel and directing counsel on her own.’"
In the official Minutes entered for the February 4 hearing, there is no mention of a capacity report or any doctor who might have written one or given testimony. There is nothing to substantiate claims of incapacity.
Following the hearing, the conservatorship attorneys wrote up Orders for Judge Goetz to sign off on on February 6. In these orders, Dr. J. Edward Spar's declaration entered the records. It was listed as a document distinct from those filed in the case.
"As a result of the pleadings that have been filed, the declaration by J. Edward Spar, M.D., and the Report of PVP counsel Mr. Ingham, the court finds that Ms. Spears does not have the capacity to retain counsel and she lacked the capacity to retain Adam F. Streisand as her counsel."
The declaration was then referenced two more times:
"Ms. Spears has a right to be present at this hearing, and she is not present. According to Dr. Spar's declaration, Ms. Spears does not have the ability to attend the hearing. Mr. Ingham indicated in his Report that Ms. Spears was given an opportunity through him to communicate to this Court, and she has elected not to. On the basis of Dr. Spar's declaration and Mr. Ingham's Report, the Court should waive Ms. Spears' presence at the hearing."
During the February 4 hearing, attorney Samuel Ingham requested an “Evidence Code 730” report about Britney. This would be different from Dr. Spar's declaration referenced on February 6.
In the context of a conservatorship, a "730 report" was typically based on an evaluation of a conservatee. This evidence would inform the Court's judgment about the health—both physical and mental—of a conservatee.
Court records showed that Mr. Ingham did file "First Report of PVP Attorney" under seal on February 14—the day after the 730 report from Dr. Stephen Marmer was expected.
Read details straight from court records that chronicle Britney's case from the first application to legally control her life and wealth in 2008 to the termination of the 13-year long conservatorship in 2021. Filled with engrossing details, context on case files, and easy to read explanations of laws governing conservatorships.
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