Britney Spears has put a potentially tricky lawsuit behind her, reports E! Online, and can now focus on her X-Factor judging.
The case - which had been running for two years - looked set to plague what has been a fairly successful comeback for the pop princess. A former bodyguard of the singers' had asserted that the she sexually harassed him, claiming that Spears regularly flashed her genitals to him, including an incident in which she supposedly bent over while wearing a see-through white dress. He also made the claim that she was an abusive mother, but after a settlement, they can both put the ordeal behind them. The case will be officially closed when a court judge signs it off; such are the terms of Britney's conservatorship.
With legal proceedings put to one side, the 30-year old pop star can now focus her attention on judging the talents of other wannabe pop singers with her role on The X-Factor, but is anyone watching? The news that Simon Cowell's talent show only garnered 8 million U.S viewers came as a sting, especially considering rival singing contest, The Voice got viewing ratings of 10 million. The show's poor performance represents a 32% drop compared to the first season's premier, and even that was considered a poor ratings haul. According to The Daily Mail, Cowell called NBC's decision to air The Voice simultaneously "a cynical, cold-hearted, unprofessional way of doing business." Sounds mighty bitter to us.