Whoa! Never thought we’d see this day…
According to a new report by TMZ on Friday, Britney Spears wants to settle the lawsuit against her estranged father, Jamie Spears, and her former management group, Tri Star Sports & Entertainment! And they’re already in talks to end this once and for all!
Wow, we really thought the settlement talk would be coming from the other side…
But per sources from both sides who spoke with the outlet, it was Britney’s attorney, Mathew Rosengart, reached out to Jamie and Tri Star’s lawyers to settle this matter. This comes after the pop star’s attorney accused the other side of misappropriating massive amounts of money while in charge of her 13-year conservatorship. Tri Star and Jamie have denied this and many other allegations made against them.
Related: Britney Cries Before Wishing Sons Happy Birthday Amid Estrangement
Interestingly, settlement talks first began just a few months after the conservatorship was terminated last November. Wow! Lawyers for Jamie and Tri Star reportedly reached out to Mathew — but at the time, he declined the offer and moved ahead with legal proceedings, such as trying to get the embattled father to sit for a deposition.
According to the insiders, Rosengart changed his mind about a month ago and offered to settle the dispute for a price tag of $7 million! Honestly not as much as we’d have expected. The question is, does Britney want to get this over with? Or does her attorney no longer think they have as strong a case as they once did? Hmm…
Whether or not the singer’s opposition still wants to settle, they definitely aren’t going to make this easy! Per the confidants, the lawyers have now questioned Mathew over how he reached the multimillion-dollar figure. But he’s not offering any specifics, creating an impasse.
However, the sources do sound hopeful a settlement could be reached at some point!
The insiders (from both sides) say all the lawyers are open to settling. One source with direct knowledge of the situation told TMZ that as recently as this week Rosengart contacted Tri Star to move ahead with the settlement. So he’s really trying to make this work! Or he’s just “scrambling” to settle the case, as sources with intel on Tri Star and Jamie’s side of the situation say.
Seeing as this case has always been a “he said, she said” situation, the sources are also bickering a bit, too! People with insider info from Brit’s camp claim Mathew is NOT scrambling and that general settlement talks are standard operating procedure in any legal dispute. It seems like at this point, the sides just have to come to an agreement on how much money is worth the end of this legal battle!
Related: Britney Spears Clarifies Xtina Comments After Body-Shaming Controversy!
Speaking of, things aren’t progressing well in court. As we mentioned, back in July, a judge ordered Jamie to sit for a deposition while he allowed the Grammy winner to submit her thoughts in a written document. On Monday, the businessman clapped back by filing legal docs in the California Court of Appeals claiming it was unfair of the judge to force him to talk and not his daughter.
In the new filing obtained by TMZ on Monday, Jamie’s attorney Alex Weingarten argued:
“The right to take a deposition can rarely be denied.”
He added:
“In California, discovery is a matter of right.”
Previously, Mathew successfully argued that making Britney sit for a deposition could be re-traumatizing to her. Doesn’t seem like her dad cares! Jamie also believes if his daughter can submit written answers, he should be able to do so too, according to the outlet. Rosengart went on to address the situation with DailyMail.com on Monday, noting:
“The Court’s rulings were thoughtful, thorough, and correct. Rather than wasting additional time and money harassing his daughter through the discovery process, Mr. Spears would be better served if he accepted his losses and moved on.”
100% agree!!
It’s hard to believe Britney’s deposition would improve his reputation anyway. He’d probably be best to fork up some money and just get over this already. But… will they ever be able to compromise on a price?? That’s the real question now! What do YOU think, Perezcious readers??
[Image via Adriana M. Barraza/WENN]