Scanlon, Garcia Lead 22 House Democrats in Opposing HHS Secretary Kennedy’s Plan to Subject Vulnerable Immigrant Children to a Captive and Compromised Legal Unit

Washington, D.C. — Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-05) and Rep. Sylvia Garcia (TX-29) last week led 22 House Democratic colleagues in opposing Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s plan to create a captive legal unit named the “Unaccompanied Alien Children Legal Representation Division” (UACLRD). The proposed unit would disregard congressional intent to protect vulnerable immigrant children by creating insurmountable conflicts of interest and precluding effective representation. A recent notice outlining a revised Statement of Organization of the HHS Office of General Counsel (OGC) includes the creation of an entirely new division within the office called the “Unaccompanied Alien Children Legal Representation Division” (UACLRD) that would operate “as a legal service provider” and provide “direct legal services” to unaccompanied children. Congress has recognized on a bipartisan basis that unaccompanied children require assistance navigating our immigration system due to their unique vulnerability and developmental level. In 2008, Congress passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA), which requires that HHS ensure counsel for these children. For nearly two decades, HHS has sought to fulfill the TVPRA’s mandate by funding outside independent legal services providers. “By contrast, legal representation provided by attorneys who work for HHS would create fundamental and unavoidable conflicts of interest. These attorneys would be subject to supervision by agency leadership and undoubtedly be influenced by the priorities of the administration in office, including implicit or explicit pressure to advance the Trump administration’s aim of swiftly removing unaccompanied children without meaningful consideration of due process,” the members wrote . “Effective legal representation often requires diligent identification and pursuit of avenues of legal protection for which a child client may be eligible, including asylum, Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS), trafficking visas, or other forms of relief—actions at odds with federal agencies’ current emphasis on rapid case completion and removal.” Establishment of UACLRD raises troubling questions on conflicts of interest, attorney independence, disregard for congressional intent, and ensuring the confidentiality of clients is one of the most notable concerns. Attorney independence is essential for ensuring compliance with client confidentiality requirements. If information about child clients gathered by HHS attorneys are recorded in government systems, it raises the possibility that DHS—the agency responsibility for prosecuting immigration cases against these children—would have access to information that should be confidential under attorney-client privilege. “Moreover, HHS is the agency responsible for unaccompanied children’s care and custody, but attorneys for unaccompanied children regularly need to advocate to HHS’s Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) for release of children to safe, vetted sponsors—work that is especially urgent given ORR’s unnecessarily prolonged detention of children in their custody under the Trump administration,” the members continued . “Attorneys cannot serve as independent advocates when they are employed by the very agency whose decisions they may need to contest.” “UACLRD is irreparably compromised. We urge you to eliminate this division immediately,” the members concluded . In the letter, the members requested answers to a number of questions by Wednesday, November 18, 2026. Find the full text of the letter here . ###