Manager confirms that Britney’s back in rehab

updated 6:22 p.m. ET Feb. 22, 2007

MALIBU, Calif. - An appearance in family court sought by Kevin Federline amid a child custody dispute with Britney Spears was canceled Thursday after the pop star entered a rehabilitation program.

Spears has gone into the Promises Malibu drug and alcohol rehabilitation center, her manager, Larry Rudolph, confirmed in an e-mail to The Associated Press. He gave no details.

The TV entertainment magazines “Extra” and “The Insider” and the Web site TMZ said Spears’ mother, Lynne Spears, drove her daughter to the center, which she had reportedly been in and out of earlier in the week.

The center specializes in treating drug and alcohol abuse.

Last week, Spears sought treatment at a center in the Caribbean but also checked out after a day, according to various reports.

Spears and Federline reportedly agreed Wednesday night that he would keep their two young sons while Spears was in rehabilitation, a program that takes between 30 and 45 days.

Superior Court spokesman Allan Parachini said Federline’s attorney had contacted the court Wednesday and asked to make an appearance in which one side in a dispute can come into court without prior notice.

He said Federline lawyer Mark Vincent Kaplan called the court’s bailiff Thursday morning “and indicated nothing is going to happen today.”

It wasn’t known what issue the 28-year-old Federline planned to raise.

“There was no official court date scheduled today and there is no future court date scheduled,” Kaplan said in a statement issued by his publicist, Michael Sands.

“Kevin continues to be a very focused father with his children with hands-on management,” the statement continued.

Federline sought spousal support and sole custody of Jayden James, 5 months, and Sean Preston, 17 months, after Spears moved to end their two-year marriage in November, but a temporary order issued Feb. 1 granted joint custody through this month.

Gina Orr, a publicist at Jive Records, Spears’ label, did not respond to e-mail and phone messages.

Last Friday, Spears arrived at a San Fernando Valley hair salon, grabbed an electric razor and shaved her head bald. Afterward, she visited a tattoo parlor, where she had a pair of red-and-pink lips inked onto her wrist. Then she went out clubbing with friends before apparently checking into Promises.

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Whether her recent behavior will damage her recording career is hard to say, said Vibe magazine music editor Jon Caramanica.

Spears, whose 1999 debut album, “... Baby One More Time,” sold more than 13 million copies, hasn’t released a new album since 2003. Before her troubles began she had promised one this year, and Caramanica suggested that might be a good outlet to address what she’s going through.

“I think the best thing she could do is make an album that engages with this subject matter in some way,” he said. “Not only to have a good album but to have an album that’s a declaration of emotional health.”

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