Media and Press

Acacia Center for Justice Reaffirms Our Commitment to Unaccompanied Children

Acacia will not hand over confidential data about our young clients.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 30, 2026

CONTACT: press@acaciajustice.org 

WASHINGTONTomorrow, July 31, 2026, marks the last day of the Acacia Center for Justice’s current contract to provide legal services for unaccompanied children through the Office of Refugee Resettlement.

For months, Acacia has been negotiating in good faith with the government to find a way to continue representing unaccompanied children who would be left without their trusted lawyers and at the whims of an administration that seems intent on finding ways to target and deport them as quickly as possible.

The government is withholding payment for work that has already been performed in order to extract confidential information about kids, information the government has no right to. Trying to justify it with lies about our work is a smoke screen, and we urge the American people to speak out against the attacks on unaccompanied children.

We are proud of the legal teams who have continued to show up and defend the rights of more than 20,000 children despite not being paid for representation or court assistance work we were funded to do since December of 2025. This is what protecting children looks like, and is the commitment that upholds the work of our 100 organization strong network the administration has been intent on dismantling since February of 2025. 

 

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About Acacia Center for Justice

Acacia Center for Justice expands meaningful access to justice and freedom for vulnerable immigrants at risk of detention or deportation in partnership with an accountable and independent national network of immigrant legal service providers and community partners. Acacia Center for Justice’s reach and impact are unparalleled. The national nonprofit currently operates publicly funded programs and responsive collaborations through a network of over 130 legal service providers nationwide.