The opening statements against the Britney Spears defamation case by her former manager Sam Lutfi were made yesterday (19 Oct) and in the Spears defence testimony there was one segment that was particularly damning of someone who was not at the case: Justin Timberlake.

In his court statement, an attorney for the Spears family pinpointed the break-up between Britney and Justin as the catalyst for her downwards spiral that eventually ended with the X Factor USA judge's very public breakdown. Lawyer Leon Gladstone contended with the court that after a "painful" break-up, things began to change noticeably with Britney, something that her parents, Jamie and Lynne Spears, both concurred with.

The testimony from the Spears camp went on to conclude that Lufti, who by the time of her break up with Kevin Federline was her closest confidant, was dictating her life as well as dictating the access paparazzi could get to the troubled star, concluding that it was Lufti's selfish behaviour and domineering attitude with the star's personal life that all but condemned her to collapse.

Representing Britney in the case is attorney Joel Boxer who, whilst making no comment on the beginnings of her fall from grace, did conceded that Lufti was not the man for the job at the time and that he was only interested in taking advantage of the singer. He told the jury: "Sam Lutfi tried to take advantage of a very vulnerable Britney Spears. Whether he gets away with it is a chapter to be written by you, ladies and gentlemen."

The ongoing lawsuit was brought forward by Lufti and in it he is seeking damages against Britney and both of her parents on the grounds of defamation and breach-of-contract. Lufti is also suing Jamie Spears for battery, claiming that Spears hit him back in 2008. Gladstone also defended this in his statement, referring the fact that Lufti never sought legal help at the time of the alleged attack.