Law firm with ties to Trump administration declines offer to represent migrant children

McALLEN, Texas — A small Texas law firm with connections to the Trump administration has declined a $150 million federal contract to represent unaccompanied migrant children crossing the border, authorities revealed on Wednesday. This decision has sparked concerns over the future representation of these children, as the administration announced plans to award the contract to Burke Law Group, a Houston-based company with limited experience in immigration law.

The contract offer came amid the administration's intensified deportation efforts and following the expiration of a key contract with nearly 100 providers for immigrant children in July. Currently, unaccompanied migrant children in federal custody are being temporarily represented by another group, but the situation remains uncertain after that group's contract ends in December.

The federal Office of Refugee Resettlement, which manages the contracts, stated that Burke Law Group had chosen not to apply for the grant and has not been awarded any funding. The agency provided no further explanation for the firm's decision. Burke Law Group's founder, Marcella Burke, had previously worked in the Trump administration as a lawyer for the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of the Interior.