Britney's Video Blackout

Fri., Oct. 26, 2007 10:45 AM PDT by Sarah Hall

For once, Britney Spears won't be caught on tape.

At a hearing Friday, the singer's lawyer, Thomas Dunlap, successfully argued that Spears' pending deposition in her custody battle with Kevin Federline should not be videotaped for posterity, given the risk of "undue embarrassment" for his client if the material were leaked onto the Internet.

Los Angeles Superior Court Commissioner Scott M. Gordon ruled in Dunlap's favor, after initially pointing out that much of the publicity the legal eagle hopes to avoid for Spears is contradicted by her behavior in public.

Federline's lawyer Mark Vincent Kaplan had argued that the session should be videotaped because of the importance of Spears' demeanor while giving the deposition. (View the minute order.)

Words alone, he said, do not always tell the full story when it comes to Spears.

"Yes could be no, and green could be black," Kaplan said.

Though Gordon ultimately ruled against Kaplan, he did grant the attorney's request to have two experts present during the deposition to evaluate Spears' testimony.

No date has been set for the deposition to take place, much to Kaplan's apparent frustration.

"I ask the court to please order [Spears] to show for deposition," Kaplan said. "We've been trying for almost one year."

He said he had asked Spears' legal team "on four occasions" to schedule the deposition, which could stretch over several days.

Deposing Spears represents a key part of Kaplan's strategy to gather sufficient evidence to convince the court that Federline should retain custody of the ex-couple's sons. He has already completed depositions of several Spears associates, including her former manager Larry Rudolph, close pal Alli Sims and a onetime bodyguard.

Spears and Federline were due to face off in court later in the day Friday, with Spears' attorney expected to argue that the embattled pop star should regain shared custody of her sons, two-year-old Sean Preston and one-year-old Jayden James.

Federline currently has full custody of the boys, though Spears is allowed to visit, provided a court-appointed monitor is present at all times.