Tomorrow, Liberty Counsel will present oral argument to the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals in Jenkins v. Miller where it will ask the court to uphold Liberty Counsel’s lower court victory over the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC).

In Jenkins v. Miller, the SPLC and its client Janet Jenkins are appealing a summary judgment that exonerated Liberty Counsel and awarded it a complete victory in a civil lawsuit over false allegations of conspiracy to aid in international kidnapping. The case centers around Jenkins who was awarded legal parent status to the daughter of her former spouse Lisa Miller in a Vermont custody battle. Liberty Counsel had represented Miller to dissolve her Vermont civil union to Jenkins in 2004. During the custody battle, Miller fled to Nicaragua with her daughter until she turned 18. In 2017, Jenkins amended her suit to include Liberty Counsel and then the SPLC began representing Jenkins seeking an astronomical $200 billion in damages.

After 186,000 pages of discovery documents, 25 depositions, 127 pages of Undisputed Facts, and about 500 pages of summary judgment legal arguments, the federal district court ruled in March 2025 that the SPLC and Jenkins presented no evidence to support their allegation that Liberty Counsel helped its client Miller to flee the country with her then two-year-old daughter in 2009 or knew of her whereabouts. The court also ruled that Jenkins’ attempt to drag Liberty Counsel into the case in 2017 was also barred by the statute of limitations.

In its recent reply brief to the court, Liberty Counsel urged the appeals court to “put an end to this baseless ligation” for it relies on “allegations and conjecture” while lacking appropriate “timing and proof.” 

Liberty Counsel Founder and Chairman Mat Staver said, “This frivolous case and appeal attempt from Janet Jenkins and the Southern Poverty Law Center have no merit. The federal court saw through the sham by granting Liberty Counsel a total victory. This baseless lawsuit by the Southern Poverty Law Center is lawfare attempting to destroy Liberty Counsel. The truth has prevailed and will continue to prevail.”