Britney Spears poses with her ex-husband Kevin Federline in this undated file photo. Their lawyers yesterday argued in a hearing over the legal fees in their child custody case. - Xinhua

US pop singer Britney Spears' new lawyer yesterday argued in a hearing with her ex Kevin Federline's lawyer over the legal fees in their child custody case, saying she has been charged too much, according to US media reports today.

Stacy Phillips, the pop star's new lawyer, argued that Federline's lawyer Mark Vincent Kaplan's fees are excessive, saying "four months of fees for both sides added up to a whopping US$900,000."

Phillips argued that Federline has the ability to pay for his own lawyer, saying, "Ms. Spears is not an open checkbook," though the current agreement stipulates that the pop star pays for all of her ex-husband's legal fees,

She believed that Kaplan's fees should be in the "US$150,000-175,000 range."

Kaplan, who earns US$600 an hour, argued that this case was atypical because of Spears' notoriety and the media attention surrounding her.

Phillips also pointed out that Federline was paying personal expenses from money that should be used for lawyers' fees.

She gave an example that Federline's ex-girlfriend, Shar Jackson, made personal charges on his business credit card, adding Federline recently spent 20,000 dollars on jewelry, and went out to dinner and left a 2,000-dollar tip on a US$365 restaurant bill.

"God bless!" Phillips said. "If he's willing to tip someone that much

for serving him, he should be willing to pay his legal fees."

Following the morning hearing, the court spokesman Allan Parachini said no decision had been made on reducing the attorney's fees.