26,000 migrant children face losing lawyers as US contract lapses
What's next: A federal judge is set to hear the funding dispute Aug. 6 after providers said the government withheld $65 million in payments.
An estimated 26,000 unaccompanied migrant children in the United States could be left without legal representation after a federal contract funding those services expired Friday. The contract, managed by Acacia Center for Justice through the Office of Refugee Resettlement, supported a network of roughly 100 legal groups serving children in federal custody and after release. Providers say the government stopped paying in November and now owes about $65 million, forcing layoffs and fewer new cases. The dispute centers on a federal demand for client-level information that lawyers argue is protected by attorney-client privilege. A hearing in the funding fight is scheduled for Aug. 6.