For Immediate Release
January 31st, 2025
Media Contact Erin Barnaby – media@amicacenter.org
Washington, DC – Today, the Amica Center for Immigrant Rights and other partner organizations, represented by Gibson Dunn, announced the filing of a federal lawsuit against the government for shutting down critical legal orientation programs for immigrants, including people detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The lawsuit, filed against the Department of Justice (DOJ), Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, and other defendants, challenges the government’s recently imposed stop-work order for legal access programs that have obliterated access to the most basic information for unrepresented noncitizens about their rights and obligations throughout removal proceedings.
Organizational plaintiffs in the suit include American Gateways, Amica Center for Immigrant Rights, Estrella del Paso, Florence Immigrant & Refugee Rights Project, Immigration Services & Legal Advocacy, National Immigrant Justice Center, Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, Pennsylvania Immigration Resource Center, and Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network.
The DOJ's decision to shut down these national legal access programs poses a significant threat to the rights of immigrant children, adults, and families, especially those detained by the government. These legal orientation programs are crucial, as they provide immigrants—the vast majority of whom are unrepresented, and many of whom are confused and traumatized, do not speak English, and lack any legal education—with essential information about their rights throughout the immigration process and deportation proceedings. Such programs have bipartisan support, and the oldest has been in place for over two decades.
The shutdown is a direct result of the January 20, 2025, Executive Order, “Protecting the American People from Invasion,” which has paved the way for mass deportations. Without access to legal information and support, noncitizens face severe obstacles in navigating their immigration proceedings.
The lawsuit aims to restore immediate access to these essential programs, ensuring that people trapped in ICE detention receive the legal orientation and support that is their legal right.
Complaint for Declaratory Injunctive Relief.
Memo in Support of a Motion for a Temporary Restraining Order and Preliminary Injunction.