The Trump administration is renewing efforts to dismantle the decades-old Flores Settlement Agreement, arguing in a court filing Thursday that the policy has become a major incentive for illegal immigration and a significant barrier to effective border enforcement.
In a joint motion filed with a federal court in Los Angeles, the Departments of Justice, Homeland Security, and Health and Human Services requested termination of the consent decree, which has regulated the detention and release of migrant children since 1997. The filing argues that the Flores agreement is outdated, unworkable, and has “ossified” immigration policy by forcing the government to choose between mass family releases or separating children from their parents.
“For years, the Flores consent decree has been a tool of the Left to promote an open borders agenda,” a senior DHS official told the Washington Examiner. “It is long overdue for a single district in California to stop managing the Executive Branch’s immigration functions. The Trump administration is committed to restoring common sense to our immigration system.”
Following the court filing, major media outlets—including the Associated Press—framed the move as an attempt to “end protections for immigrant children in federal custody.” However, in reality, terminating the Flores agreement could reduce the number of family separations that occur after migrants are taken into custody by Customs and Border Protection.
The motion to dissolve the Flores agreement is scheduled to be reviewed at a July 18 hearing before U.S. District Judge Dolly Gee, who has overseen the case for years. Judge Gee previously blocked the Trump administration’s attempts to hold families in detention beyond the 20-day limit imposed by Flores, a restriction that often resulted in the separation of children from their parents.
The move represents President Donald Trump’s most direct effort to dismantle the Flores Settlement Agreement to date. A similar attempt during the latter part of his first term was blocked by the courts in 2019. However, administration officials now believe the timing is more favorable, citing new regulatory standards and a judiciary significantly reshaped by Trump’s appointments during his first four years, the Examiner reported.
In a 67-page court filing, the administration highlights numerous legal and policy changes since the Flores agreement was established, including the passage of the Homeland Security Act and the adoption of federal standards of care for migrant children. Officials argue these developments have rendered the settlement both unnecessary and unconstitutional.
The Justice Department further contends that the courts have improperly broadened the scope of Flores over time—particularly by extending its protections to families with children, rather than limiting it to Unaccompanied Alien Children, the group originally covered by the agreement. That population, officials note, has sharply declined since Trump returned to office.
“This class has included millions of people over the years. The FSA—originally designed to address a very specific set of narrow circumstances—has been interpreted to address the custody of all minors at all stages,” the government wrote in court filings Thursday.
