Trump administration to assign government lawyers to migrant kids’ cases, worrying advocates
Critics say the move could leave 24,000 cases without independent counsel as HHS shifts child immigration defense inside the agency.
- Last week, The Trump administration announced creation of an in-house legal team within the Health and Human Services Department to provide direct legal advice and counsel to unaccompanied migrant children through the new Unaccompanied Alien Children Legal Representation Division.
- This decision follows the administration cutting ties with the Acacia Center, which managed 24,000 cases through a vast network of legal service providers. The government recently awarded a contract to Our Rescue worth up to $244 million.
- Shaina Aber, executive director of the Acacia Center, argued the move creates conflicts of interest, stating it 'will only give HHS new opportunities to forsake children's rights and well-being.' Critics contend placing legal representation inside the agency holding children violates independence standards.
- Wendy Young, president of Kids in Need of Defense, warned government-employed attorneys might encourage minors to accept voluntary departure. Young noted the child's lawyer, judge, and prosecutors seeking deportation would all be federal employees.
- Sui Chung, executive director of Americans for Immigrant Justice, stated denying independent counsel is a 'fundamental breakdown of the fairness our Constitution promises.' The division will operate under HHS general counsel direction, raising questions about zealous representation.
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73 Articles
Trump administration to use government lawyers to represent migrant children - Regional Media News
The Trump administration has quietly organized a team of government attorneys to represent unaccompanied migrant children in immigration court, according to a federal notice. The announcement, posted by the Department of Health and Human Services, says that HHS lawyers under a new agency division will [...]
MyClallamCounty.com
Trump administration to use government lawyers to represent migrant children
In this June 10, 2025, file photo, federal agents patrol the halls of immigration court at the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building in New York. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images, FILE) The Trump administration has quietly organized a
Department of Health creates federal corps to represent thousands of unaccompanied minors
NEWS HEADLINES: Trump Administration Quietly Creates New Legal Team for Migrant Children — Critics Sound the Alarm – 100PercentFedUp.com – by Jack
If you listened only to the loudest critics, you might think the Trump administration had just stripped unaccompanied migrant children of legal help. The actual order does something very different: President Trump’s Department of Health and Human Services has created a new team of government lawyers whose job is to represent those children in immigration court. And the fine print matters. The new unit is called the Unaccompanied Alien Children L…
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