US unaccompanied migrant children face heightened deportation risk as legal aid contract lapses

On Friday the federal contract that paid a network of nearly 100 legal service providers to represent unaccompanied migrant children in immigration court expired. The program covered roughly 20,000 children, and providers have not been paid for more than six months. Advocates warn that without court‑appointed attorneys, tens of thousands of children could be deported, and the Trump administration has not announced a replacement.

In New York City, Judge Lisa W. Ling presides over the detained juvenile docket where hundreds of children, some as young as three, appear before the court without counsel. Court records show that only about a quarter of the more than 300 cases heard between June and July had attorneys. Child‑rights advocates argue the lack of representation violates federal regulations that require legal counsel for minors.