Thursday, 3 January 2008

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Britney Spears's quickie deposition

She visits for just 90 minutes

Britney Spears's visit to the Los Angeles office of Kevin Federline's attorney, Mark Vincent Kaplan, didn't go exactly as planned on Thursday.

She was 90 minutes late, and left after less than a quarter hour of questioning.

The singer, wearing a hot pink dress and heels, arrived for her despostion after numerous previous failures to show. Less than an hour later, she drove off in her white Mercedes without speaking to the press.

Yet back at her Beverly Hills home, when a photographer asked if Kaplan was nice to her, Spears responded with an emphatic, "No!"

Spears, 26, was expected to be grilled about her past drug and alcohol use, her apparent failure to follow court orders and other matters that might pertain to her parenting skills.

Asked if he got information he was looking for, Kaplan replied stoically, "In 14 minutes?"

He described her demeanor as "cooperative," and said the appointment was only scheduled from 9:45 to 11:45 a.m. "I would've preferred it had gone on longer," he said.

The attorney added that he hasn't decided whether to pursue sanctions against Spears for being late. He also said another deposition appointment had been set, but gave no details.

Although he said Spears gave a reason for being an hour and a half late, he did not specify what the excuse was.

"A deposition can be emotionally draining, because Kevin's lawyer can ask very personal questions about her relationship with her kids – and she'll be under oath," says L.A. family lawyer Lynn Soodik, who's not involved with the case.

On Wednesday, Spears's legal team filed a request with a court asking that it be removed from the singer's custody case, citing a "breakdown in communications" with Spears.

A hearing in that matter is set for Feb. 4. Until then, the firm of Trope & Trope still represents her.

Kaplan has already completed a number of depositions with Spears's associates, including her longtime friend, Alli Sims, former manager Larry Rudolph and former bodyguard Daimon Shippen.

Kaplan will use evidence gathered from the depositions to try to persuade the court that Federline, 29, should be granted primary physical custody of their children, Preston, 2, and Jayden, 1, in any final ruling.

By Ken Lee