Washington, DC — A federal court ruled today in Angelica S. v. HHS, certifying a class of unaccompanied children and blocking the Trump-Vance administration’s unlawful new policies that have prolonged the detention of immigrant children and prevented their release to their parents and other loving family members.
The court found that the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) enacted restrictive identification and proof of income requirements for all potential sponsors of children in ORR custody without adequate explanation and without considering the interests of children who were already in the middle of their release processes. These new requirements have made it nearly impossible for parents and close relatives to sponsor unaccompanied children, trapping them in government custody for months.
“This ruling sends a clear and necessary message: the government cannot trap children in detention simply because their families lack specific documents,” said Skye Perryman, President and CEO of Democracy Forward. “The court’s decision is not only a step toward reuniting families—it pushes back against a broader effort to erode long-standing legal protections for children. We are proud to work alongside our partners and clients to challenge a policy that represents a systemic threat to fairness, child welfare, and the rule of law.”
“We are grateful the court recognized that our brave clients and other children in their same situation should not be denied reunification based on arbitrary documentation requirements if they have loving and capable family members available,” said Mishan Wroe, National Center for Youth Law.
As a result of the court’s ruling, the government must stop applying the challenged unlawful requirements to children who entered ORR custody on or before April 22, 2025, and begin processing family sponsorships without discriminatory, unreasonable paperwork barriers. This will help to ensure children are not held in custody longer than necessary and can instead be placed in the care of their families or other caring sponsors.
The case is Angelica S. v. HHS. The legal team at Democracy Forward on this case includes Cynthia Liao and Joel McElvain. The legal team at the National Center for Youth Law on this case includes Neha Desai, Mishan Wroe, Diane de Gramont, Becky Wolozin, and David Hinojosa.
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Democracy Forward Foundation is a national legal organization that advances democracy and social progress through litigation, policy, public education, and regulatory engagement. For more information, please visit www.democracyforward.org
The National Center for Youth Law centers youth through research, community collaboration, impact litigation, and policy advocacy that fundamentally transforms our nation’s approach to education, health, immigration, foster care, and youth justice. Our vision is a world in which every child thrives and has a full and fair opportunity to achieve the future they envision for themselves. For more information, please visit www.youthlaw.org.