Amanda Bynes Follows In Britney Spears' Footsteps, Taking Action Against Her Conservatorship

If you're a Millennial (or a fan of Nickelodeon), it's likely that actor Amanda Bynes at least provided you with a few laugh-out-loud moments over the years through her successful show, "The Amanda Show." Bynes was nearly on top of the world when she began experiencing a very public breakdown of sorts in 2012, when she was arresting for driving under the influence. As Entertainment Weekly reported, Bynes continued to showcase erratic behavior over the next few years, getting multiple facial piercings, involving herself in multiple hit-and-runs, and issuing public statements to publications and through her Twitter and Tumblr pages that caused many to worry about her mental health.

The final straw, at least for Bynes' parents, was in August 2013 when she set a driveway on fire. After that incident, Bynes' mother, Lynn Bynes, was granted temporary conservatorship over her daughter. In October 2014, this conservatorship was made permanent, according to People. Four years later, the conservatorship was extended to end in August 2020. Us Weekly reported that Bynes remained under the conservatorship of her mother after a judge reviewed a status report on the actress' health in September 2021. Bynes was to remain under the conservatorship until another health update was provided in January 2023; however, Bynes has now filed a petition to end the arrangement. This comes after Britney Spears famously ended her conservatorship in November 2021.

After nearly nine years of being in a conservatorship managed by her mother, Lynn Bynes, Amanda Bynes filed documents at the Ventura County Superior Court in California to end her conservatorship. According to Page Six, Bynes also had to file a capacity declaration, as California conservatorship cases require that a conservatee prove that their mental state is stable enough to end their conservatorship. An official hearing to potentially end the arrangement will be held on March 22. "Amanda wishes to terminate her conservatorship. She believes her condition is improved and protection of the court is no longer necessary," Bynes' attorney, David A. Esquibias, said in a statement, per Page Six.

In the past few years, Bynes has announced her engagement to Paul Michael, whom she met at a sober living home, and has begun going to school to attain a degree from California's Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising. Last year, Esquibias spoke to Us Weekly about Bynes' progress and her desire to end her conservatorship. "She's doing great," Esquibias told Us Weekly. "Everyone would love to see Amanda not under a conservatorship. I think that is the goal between myself, her mother, her father, and her care providers. Amanda would love to be unconserved. She's expressed it over and over. The timing is not right at the moment, so she's working toward that direction. We all are working toward that direction, and one day we all hope to see it."