Spears and Federline resume custody battle

Lawyers for Britney Spears and Kevin Federline were back in a US court in an ongoing custody dispute involving the pair's children.

Federline's lawyer, Mark Kaplan, said the unscheduled court session was called to "refine certain areas" of a judge's previous order. He would not elaborate.

Spears' attorney, Sorrell Trope, confirmed that the hearing in Los Angeles involved issues related to the custody case but declined to comment further.

Spears, 25, and ex-husband Federline, 29, are the parents of Sean Preston, 2, and Jayden James, 1.

The court hearing came days after city prosecutors charged Spears with misdemeanour counts of hit-and-run and driving without a valid licence, claiming she smashed her car into another in a car park in August.

Federline wants to increase his custody time with the former couple's two young sons. They divide time with the children equally.

The first hearing date is on November 26, but the second date has been delayed from December 18 to early January, Kaplan said.

The judge last week issued orders directing Spears to undergo random testing twice a week after finding she is involved in "habitual, frequent and continuous use of controlled substances and alcohol".

If convicted on the driving charges, Spears could face up to six months in jail and a 1,000 dollar (€710.50) fine for each count.

Spears was scheduled to be arraigned in that case on October 10, but she is not required to appear.