Amanda Bynes Fans Are Celebrating After She Filed To End Her Conservatorship

After being placed under a court-mandated conservatorship in 2013, actor Amanda Bynes has filed a petition on Wednesday, Feb. 23 with the Ventura Country Superior Court in California to end her conservatorship, according to People. In a statement to the magazine, her lawyer said he believes “her condition is improved and protection of the court is no longer necessary.” Bynes will report to a judge on March 22 for her petition to be heard, per Buzzfeed. Once the fans heard about the legal action, tweets about Amanda Bynes filing to end her conservatorship took over social media.

Bynes’ conservatorship began almost nine years ago when her mother Lynn Bynes was granted temporary conservatorship over Amanda after she reportedly set fire to a driveway, according to People. The 35-year-old was also dealing with other legal issues at the time, and the fire resulted in Bynes’ involuntary hospitalization for a mental health evaluation. While being evaluated, her parents petitioned the court to enact the conservatorship due to their belief their daughter was going through substance abuse and was “extremely paranoid,” per Buzzfeed.

Based on court documents, People reported that the court’s next status update on Bynes’ health to determine if the conservatorship would continue was scheduled for January 2023. However, Bynes’ attorney David Esquibias told the publication that conservatorship being extended to 2023 was not correct.

“Her conservatorship is not extended through March 2023. It is open day today,” he said in a September 2021 interview. “A status report regarding her health and welfare was recently filed and approved by the court. By law, the next status report is due in two years. Her conservatorship will terminate when it is no longer convenient for Amanda.”

Upon hearing the star’s action to terminate the conservatorship, many fans showed support on Twitter.

Some fans used the exciting legal action to celebrate Bynes’ past performances. Bynes was a TV and movie fixture throughout the 2000s, helming her own Nickelodeon sketch comedy series The Amanda Show as well as starring in beloved comedy movies like What a Girl Wants and She’s the Man.

Some people were surprised by the announcement, admitting they had no idea Bynes was in a conservatorship at all.

The announcement comes just a few months after Britney Spears’ conservatorship ended on Nov. 12, 2021. Supporters of Bynes are optimistic that she will see the same success as Spears in freeing herself from the conservatorship.