Los Angeles (AFP)

Britney Spears' father gives up continuing to take charge of the singer, US media said Thursday, which could end a bitter, high-profile legal battle with his daughter.

Citing new legal documents, celebrity news site TMZ said Jamie Spears intended "to work with the court and his daughter's new lawyer to prepare for a smooth transition to a new guardian."

This is a turnaround for the one who first said he would challenge the legal process initiated by Britney Spears, 39, to remove this controversial tutelage, which has given his father all control over his finances since 2008 .

"Is a change of guardian now in Ms. Spears' best interests? This is highly questionable," her father's attorneys write in their document, according to the New York Times.

“Nonetheless, although Mr. Spears is the target of relentless and unwarranted attacks, he does not believe that a public battle with his daughter over her role as guardian is in the singer's best interest,” they add.

Jamie Spears on March 10, 2008 in Los Angeles Valerie MACON AFP / Archives

Pop star's attorney, Mathew Rosengart, praised the announcement in a statement quoted by media.

"We are pleased that Mr Spears and his lawyer have today admitted in a legal document that he must be withdrawn. Justice is done for Britney," he said.

The lawyer still promises to "continue our vigorous investigation into the behavior of Mr. Spears, and others, over the past 13 years, while he collected millions of dollars from his daughter's property."

- "Free Britney" -

Britney Spears was placed under guardianship in 2008 because of concerns for her mental health, after a well-publicized descent into hell.

Supporters of Britney Spears gathered in a court in Los Angeles on June 23, 2021 Frederic J. BROWN AFP / Archives

For years, an army of fans has been campaigning on social networks (but also sometimes in the street with rallies) to "free" the singer, dissecting every gesture and saying they see calls for help.

Britney Spears this summer implored a Los Angeles court to lift the guardianship, calling it "abusive".

At the end of June, the singer had said in court "traumatized" and "depressed".

For about twenty minutes, speaking uninterruptedly with an extremely fast flow, she had assured to have had to take drugs to control her behavior, not to have been authorized to make decisions concerning her friendships or her finances, and not to have been able to having an IUD removed when she wanted to have more children.

"I just want to get my life back, it's been thirteen years and that's enough," she begged.

© 2021 AFP