Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Amanda Bynes files to end her conservatorship after nine years: ‘It’s no longer necessary’

Actor’s legal guardianship was extended for another two years in September 2021

Isobel Lewis
Friday 25 February 2022 16:05 EST
Bynes in 2003 (left) and in 2015
Bynes in 2003 (left) and in 2015 (Getty/Shutterstock)

Your support helps us to tell the story

This election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.

The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.

Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.

Amanda Bynes has filed to end her conservatorship after nine years.

The She’s The Man star was initially placed under a temporary conservatorship in August 2013 after suffering a number of mental health and substance problems.

However, her mother Lynn, who is Bynes’s conservator, asked for the legal guardianship to be extended by a judge. It has been continued a number of times since, most recently in September for another two years.

However, on Tuesday (22 February), Bynes filed a capacity declaration at Ventura County Superior Court in California. This document shows an up-to-date assessment of a conservatee’s mental state and is a required document used in California conservatorship cases.

The following day (Wednesday 25 February), the 35-year-old submitted court documents requesting the termination of the conservatorship of both her person and her estate.

A hearing is scheduled for 22 March.

In a statement shared with People, the former child star’s lawyer David A Esquibias said: “Amanda wishes to terminate her conservatorship. She believes her condition is improved and protection of the court is no longer necessary.”

Bynes appearing in court in July 2013
Bynes appearing in court in July 2013 (Getty Images)

Bynes was first detained in July 2013 after she allegedly started a small fire in a stranger’s driveway. She was hospitalised for 72 hours, during which her parents filed for conservatorship.

In 2018, the Easy A actor said that she had been sober for four years with the help of her parents.

Speaking to Paper, she said: “I’m really ashamed and embarrassed with the things I said. I can’t turn back time but if I could, I would.”

Bynes began her career as a child actor on kids’ channel Nickelodeon, where she starred in her own series The Amanda Show from 1999 to 2002.

She went on to star in a number of high-profile teen movies, including Big Fat Liar, What A Girl Wants, Sidney White and Easy A.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in