Marcella Burke

The Trump administration awarded a $150 million contract to provide legal representation for unaccompanied migrant children to Houston-based Burke Law Group, a firm with limited immigration law experience and ties to the administration. Legal aid groups criticized the decision, warning it could jeopardize children's due process and increase deportation risks.

The Trump administration awarded a $150 million contract to Texas-based Burke Law Group for legal representation of unaccompanied migrant children, despite the firm's limited immigration law experience and ties to the administration. Legal aid groups warn this could jeopardize children's due process and increase deportation risks, as the prior contract with experienced providers expired without replacement.

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.

The Department of Health and Human Services plans to award a $150 million contract to the Burke Law Group, a Texas firm run by a former Trump administration official, to provide legal aid to unaccompanied immigrant children. The firm replaces the Acacia Center for Justice, whose contract expired, and has limited immigration law expertise, with only two of its nearly 30 lawyers specializing in immigration and asylum law.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services plans to award a $150 million contract to Burke Law Group, a Texas-based firm with limited immigration law expertise and ties to a former Trump administration official, to provide legal services to unaccompanied immigrant children. The contract replaces a previous agreement with the Acacia Center for Justice, which expired after disputes over client information sharing.