LYNCHBURG, Va. (PRWEB) September 02, 2018
A Vermont federal court judge reversed himself and dismissed Liberty University from a contentious case that has been ongoing for more than six years, JANET JENKINS v. KENNETH L. MILLER, ET AL, Case No. 2:12-cv-184 in the Federal District Court for Vermont. The order came Wednesday in response to Liberty’s motion to reconsider. According to Liberty’s lawyers, such motions have a high degree of difficulty and are rarely granted.
”The University appreciates Judge Sessions’ willingness to reconsider his earlier ruling and recognize that there was no legal basis for the suit against the University,” said David Corry, General Counsel for Liberty.
It was the second time Liberty was dismissed from the case which is seeking damages from all those connected to a mother who removed her child from the United States rather than comply with a court order to share custody with her former civil union partner. The court found that Liberty University could not be vicariously liable for the actions of a Liberty law professor and dean who represented the mother in family law litigation conducted by a non-profit public interest law firm that also employed them. The court had previously dismissed Liberty because it didn’t have jurisdiction over it but had changed its position when the complaint was amended with new allegations.
The original custody dispute in 2004 has spawned 14 years of litigation so far that includes dueling parallel custody suits and appeals in Vermont and Virginia state courts, an insurance coverage case in Virginia federal district court and the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, several federal criminal cases in Vermont, as well as the currently ongoing Vermont case from which Liberty was dismissed. The case is Janet Jenkins v. Kenneth Miller and others.
David M. Corry
General Counsel
About Liberty University
Liberty University, founded in 1971, is the world’s premier Christian university, the largest private, nonprofit university in the nation, and the largest university in Virginia. Located near the Blue Ridge Mountains on more than 7,000 acres in Lynchburg, Va., Liberty offers more than 600 unique programs of study from the certificate to the doctoral level. About 350 programs are offered online. Utilizing its world class infrastructure and Christian faculty, Liberty’s mission is to train Champions for Christ with the values, knowledge, and skills essential for impacting tomorrow’s world.
CONTACT: Len Stevens
Executive Director of External Communications
(434) 582-7751
ljstevens(at)liberty(dot)edu
Liberty University Dismissed from Vermont case