Texas law firm withdraws from $150M contract to represent unaccompanied migrant children

Key Points:

• Burke Law Group, a small Texas law firm with ties to the Trump administration, has withdrawn from consideration for a $150 million federal contract to represent unaccompanied migrant children after concerns from immigrant advocacy groups.
• The contract, intended to provide legal orientation and representation for unaccompanied children during immigration proceedings, was initially set to be awarded to Burke Law Group by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
• Advocacy groups criticized the decision, arguing that the firm was unqualified compared to nonprofits like the Acacia Center for Justice, which has long provided legal services to migrant children and currently oversees subcontracts for over 20,000 children.
• HHS had reportedly offered Acacia a new contract contingent on providing detailed client data, which Acacia refused due to confidentiality and legal privilege concerns.
• HHS is now in the final stages of negotiating with another contractor to take over the legal representation services for unaccompanied migrant children.