Navigating Sovereign Citizen Claims: Legal Theories, Risks and Defense Strategies
Legal Learning Webinar
Join us for a webinar on Mar 19, 2026 at 2:00 PM EDT.
Sovereign citizen matters often present as “paper-heavy” disputes built on pseudo-legal theories, but the operational and litigation risk is real. This program provides a practical primer on the sovereign citizen movement—how it frames “sovereignty,” why it persists, and why seemingly meritless communications can still trigger compliance and litigation consequences.
Attendees will learn to identify and respond to common sovereign citizen arguments and filings, including jurisdictional challenges, UCC-based claims, “vapor money”/redemptionist theories, and “international bill of exchange” tactics. The presenters will walk through representative case law rejecting these theories and highlight common “quasi-evidentiary” tools used to pressure creditors and counsel (e.g., debt validation demands and “notice” arguments), as well as the growing use of sham arbitration.
Finally, the session covers practical response strategies and available remedies—ranging from statutory options addressing false liens and intimidation, to litigation tools such as counterclaims, declaratory relief, early dispositive motions, vexatious litigant frameworks, and Rule 11 considerations—so you can triage quickly and reduce downstream cost and risk.
Speakers: Caren Enloe, Smith Debnam Narron Drake Saintsing and Myers, L.L.P.; Manny Newburger, Barron & Newburger, P.C.; Andrew Schwartz, Messer Strickler Burnette, Ltd.
After completing this program, participants will be able to:
- Define the sovereign citizen movement and summarize key risk considerations for legal and compliance response (including why “meritless” communications may still require careful handling).
- Identify and categorize common sovereign citizen theories and tactics, including redemptionist/strawman concepts, “vapor money,” and “no money lent” narratives.
- Evaluate and rebut recurring jurisdictional and statutory arguments (including UCC and federal statutory theories) using examples of how courts have rejected them.
- Recognize and respond to “payment instrument” tactics such as “international bills of exchange,” and explain why these claims have been uniformly rejected.
- Apply a response framework for common “quasi-evidentiary” pressure tools (e.g., debt validation demands, “notice” arguments, UCC 1-308 reservations) while maintaining appropriate legal positioning.
- Select appropriate remedies and litigation strategies for escalation scenarios, including statutory false-lien remedies, counterclaims/declaratory relief, vexatious litigant approaches, and Rule 11 considerations.
CLE is Pending Final State Approval
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
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CLE Information
National Creditors Bar Association is a national provider of legal educational content. NCBA’s goal is to provide its members with as many opportunities as possible to earn Continuing Legal Education (CLE) credits. Some NCBA webinars state that they are pending approval. If a webinar is pending approval, it means that NCBA’s education staff is awaiting confirmation of approval for CLE credit from the accrediting body of a particular state; it should be noted that individual states have different response and approval rates. NCBA expects that the course will be approved for the credit amount and type listed, but approval is not guaranteed. An attorney can still take the course at their own discretion, though.
It is not uncommon for a course which is pending approval to not be approved until after the webinar has taken place. Once an official decision notice arrives from the state, NCBA will notify attorneys who have completed the course as soon as possible via email, and will re-issue any certificates of completion to reflect the updated state reporting numbers. However, it is recommended that attorneys do not view webinars that are pending approval close to their CLE deadline, as NCBA cannot guarantee that a course will be approved in time.
National Creditors Bar Association will seek MCLE accreditation, with the assistance of the ABA MCLE, for this webinar. NCBA will seek General CLE credit hours in 60-minute-hour states, and in 50-minute states, subject to each state’s approval and credit rounding rules. States typically decide whether a program qualifies for MCLE credit in their jurisdiction 4-8 weeks after the program application is submitted. For many live events, credit approval is not received prior to the program. A link for CLE requests will be provided to webinar attendees who have met the attendance and engagement requirements.