Skip navigation
sponsored by 

Judge rules Spears case will stay in state court

Magistrate: Lawyer had no authority to act on behalf of pop star

updated 8:59 p.m. ET Feb. 26, 2008

LOS ANGELES - A Los Angeles federal judge has rejected a motion to move the Britney Spears conservatorship case to U.S. District Court.

Judge Philip Gutierrez said in Tuesday’s ruling that the lawyer who claims to represent Spears is not her attorney and has no authority to act on her behalf.

The judge says attorney Jon Eardley acted improperly in trying to move the case to federal court.

Story continues below ↓
advertisement

The judge also denied a request by Spears’ father, James, and his lawyer to recover their legal costs to defend against the move.

A state court earlier named James Spears as conservator for the pop star. He and an attorney are co-conservators of her estimated $100 million estate.

© 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Sponsored links

Resource guide

Get Your 2008 Credit Score

Search Jobs

Find your next car

Find Your Dream Home

Find a business to start

$7 trades, no fee IRAs