Small Texas law firm run by Trump ally wins contract for legal aid to immigrant kids

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services plans to award a $150 million contract to Burke Law Group, a Houston-based firm founded in 2023 by Marcella Burke, a former Trump administration official, to provide legal services to 24,000 unaccompanied immigrant children. The contract replaces a previous agreement with the Acacia Center for Justice, which expired after tensions over client information, and the new firm has limited immigration law expertise. The contract, starting August 15, 2023, allows subcontracting and follows a decline in legal representation access for immigrant children since December.