Miller-Jenkins v. Miller-Jenkins

Case seeking regular visitation rights for a lesbian mother and the daughter she and her former partner had while in a Vermont civil union

  • Status: Open
    • Opened: 07/01/04
  • Attorneys
    • Lambda Legal: Gregory R. Nevins
    • Co-counsel/Cooperating Attorneys: Joseph R. Price of Arent, Fox; Rebecca Glenberg of the ACLU of Virginia, and John L. Squires of Equality Virginia Education Fund

Summary

Janet Jenkins (formerly Janet Miller-Jenkins) filed an appealAppeal  To ask a higher court to reverse the decision of a trial court (more keywords) with the Virginia Court of Appeals seeking to ensure respect for a Vermont court orderOrder  A command, direction or instruction by a court or judge (more keywords) saying she must have regular visitation with the daughter she and her former partner, Lisa Miller (formerly Miller-Jenkins), had when the two women were joined in a Vermont civil union. After the women ended their relationship, Miller moved to Virginia with the women’s daughter, and asked a Vermont court to dissolve the couple’s civil union and sort out custody of the child. When the Vermont court ordered visitation for Jenkins, Miller filed a new lawsuit in Virginia court, successfully using that state’s antigay marriage law to have herself declared the child’s sole legal parent. The conflicting court orders — one from Vermont ordering regular visitation for Jenkins, and the other from a lower court in Virginia naming Miller as the sole parent — led to a decision by the Virginia Court of Appeals to uphold the Vermont court order granting Janet Jenkins visitation rights.

Context

The federal Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act makes it clear that court orders regarding custody and visitation enacted in one state must be enforced in other states as well.

Lambda Legal's Impact

In this case, the Virginia Court of Appeals rightly recognized that federal law protects parents against the very thing Lisa Miller did — shopping around for a court to give them sole custody. The message is clear: lesbian and gay parents must be treated like other couples when courts evaluate the best interest of the child in custody cases.

History

  • July 2004 Lisa Miller files an action in circuit court in Virginia seeking to have herself declared the child's sole legal parent. Miller succeeds in the trial court.
  • November 2004 Lambda Legal files appeal on behalf of Janet Jenkins seeking to ensure respect for a Vermont court order granting her regular visitation with her daughter.
  • November 2006 Victory! Virginia Court of Appeals upholds Vermont court order.
  • April 2008 Lambda Legal argues in Virginia Supreme Court that court orders regarding custody and visitation issued in one state must be enforced in other states as well.
  • June 2008 Victory! Virginia Supreme Court upholds Vermont court order.