First Mondays is a special discussion program about current business and political events through a legal lens. This program is an opportunity to meet Albany Law School faculty and to participate in a stimulating discussion on world events.
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Hosts: Prof. Patricia Reyhan - Distinguished Professor of Law; Prof. Ted De Barbieri - Associate Professor of Law; Director, Community Economic Development Clinic
Expert Guests: Prof. Rose Mary Bailly - Advisor to the GLC and Pro Bono Programs, Adjunct Professor; Jennifer J. Monthie ’03 - Legal Director, Disability Rights New York
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American pop music icon Britney Spears is 39 years old.
For the past thirteen years, her career, all of her considerable financial wealth, and many aspects of her well-being have been held in a conservatorship under the significant or exclusive control of her father. In a much-publicized case, Ms. Spears asked a court to remove her father from this role, threatening to cease performances were he not to be removed. The circumstances surrounding the conservatorship were recently brought to wide public attention through a New York Times documentary "Framing Britney Spears" and through #FreeBritney.
Conservatorships are familiar legal responses to scenarios where individuals, either because of age or cognitive impairment, are unable to act responsibly for themselves. In that sense, they perform an important legal and familial role. But the Spears case illustrates the problems embedded in stripping a large swatch of personal autonomy from an individual.
This month’s “First Monday” explores these issues with the guidance of professors and practitioners who have explored the tension between personal autonomy and societal/familial concern for the individual.
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Attend First Mondays events: alumni@albanylaw.edu
