The Department of Health and Human Services has announced a government-run legal division to represent unaccompanied children in deportation proceedings, placing their lawyers inside the department responsible for their care. HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. signed the Federal Register announcement establishing the Unaccompanied Alien Children Legal Representation Division.
The new unit will operate under HHS’s general counsel. The department says its lawyers will offer “direct legal advice and counsel,” help with family reunification and provide legal support to children.
HHS says the division is formally separate from its Office of Refugee Resettlement, which holds custody of unaccompanied children before they are released to sponsors. The new lawyers, however, will still work for the same department.
That arrangement has drawn objections from child advocates. Shaina Aber, executive director of the Acacia Center for Justice, called placing representation inside the agency responsible for children in immigration custody an “unprecedented step” that fails basic standards for independent counsel.
Ana Raquel Devereaux of the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center also raised concerns about the absence of independent representation. The objections focus on whether lawyers employed by HHS can make decisions solely for the children they represent.
The new unit replaces a nonprofit network that advocates say served children better
The administration ended the earlier network of independent nonprofit legal providers after providers refused to share privileged information about their clients. Advocates have also questioned whether the replacement arrangements provide meaningful courtroom representation.
In some recent proceedings, lawyers allegedly sat silently while judges handled children’s cases. Roxana Avila-Cimpeanu of the Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project said safeguards depend on experienced representatives trained to work with children. She criticized the administration for dismantling the established child-centered network without an adequate replacement plan.
The children’s cases can involve more than deportation allegations. Unaccompanied children are generally minors who entered the United States without a parent or legal guardian. Their cases may include asylum claims, eligibility for Special Immigrant Juvenile status, trafficking-related protections, family-based claims or other defenses to removal.
Many children are vulnerable to trafficking, abuse and coercion, and may misunderstand legal proceedings. That makes the relationship with counsel especially important when a case turns on sensitive experiences or a child’s ability to explain them.
Children’s cases can involve asylum, trafficking and family claims
The new structure puts federal personnel on each side of a removal case, though they work for separate agencies. A child’s lawyer would be an HHS employee; immigration judges work for the Department of Justice; and Department of Homeland Security attorneys prosecute removal cases.
Government employment does not itself establish that a lawyer will provide inadequate representation. But the structure has prompted concern that institutional priorities could pull against a child’s interests. A lawyer might face pressure to favor family reunification, quick resolution, voluntary departure or removal over pursuing every available form of relief.
There are also questions about what children will feel safe disclosing. A child may hold back information about trauma, trafficking, gang threats or abuse if the lawyer seems like another government official, rather than an advocate whose loyalty is to the child.
Effective representation can require challenging custody decisions, disputing allegations, seeking continuances and presenting sensitive evidence against the government’s position. Children’s cases also call for specialized knowledge of asylum, Special Immigrant Juvenile classification, trafficking protections, family reunification and trauma-informed interviewing.
Immigration attorney Matthew Young warned that a government-employed lawyer could be encouraged to recommend voluntary departure instead of presenting the strongest case for a child to remain in the United States. That possibility remains a concern raised about the structure, not a description of a decision in any particular case.
The dispute could reach the courts
The legal and ethical question extends beyond whether HHS employs licensed attorneys. It concerns whether children facing deportation can receive counsel whose professional loyalty, confidentiality obligations and litigation choices are independent of the government controlling their custody and seeking their removal.
The arrangement may prompt litigation over statutory requirements for independent legal representation and whether children receive adequate representation in removal proceedings. The department’s lawyers are intended to provide legal support, while advocates continue to question whether the new system can replace independent, child-centered counsel.
This article provides general information and is not legal advice. Consult a qualified immigration attorney about your specific case.
