The federal government appealed a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) from the district court that temporarily blocked the government from withdrawing funding for the legal representation of unaccompanied children–representation that the government is required to fund “to the greatest extent practicable” by the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act. The case was brought by eleven legal service providers from all over the country that, until funding was terminated on March 21, 2025, provided representation and related services to unaccompanied children with funding from the federal government. Although TROs typically are not appealable, due to their temporary nature, the federal government appealed the TRO on April 11.
On April 15, 2025, a three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the parties to provide briefing on whether the district court’s TRO was appealable. After receiving briefing from both sides, the panel issued a decision on April 18, 2025, holding that the TRO was not appealable.
The federal government moved for a rehearing en banc, asking a larger panel of the Ninth Circuit to reconsider the decision of the three-judge panel. The motion failed to win the requisite number of votes from the full court and was denied on April 25, 2025.
