(NewsNation) — A class-action lawsuit filed Wednesday by a coalition of civil rights groups seeks to end the Trump administration‘s practice of arresting people attending their immigration court hearings.
The lawsuit, filed at a federal court in Washington, D.C., by Immigrant Advocates Response Collaborative, American Gateways and 12 anonymous immigrants, alleges that such enforcement instills “palpable fear” and prevents people from attending their hearings altogether.
Trump expanded Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s ability to make arrests early in his second term, authorizing officers to target immigrants at courthouses as well as sensitive locations like schools and churches.
“Noncitizens, including most of the individual plaintiffs here, have been abruptly ripped from their families, lives, homes, and jobs for appearing in immigration court, a step required to enable them to proceed with their applications for permission to remain in this country,” the lawsuit reads.
Federal agents detain Carlos Javier Lopez Benitez, center, from Paraguay as they pull away his sister, Porfiria Lopez, a U.S. citizen, left, outside immigration court at the Jacob K. Javits federal building on July 16, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura) 
New York City Comptroller Brad Lander talks to federal agents outside immigration court at the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building on July 16, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura) 
Federal agents leave immigration court through a staircase on July 8, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Olga Fedorova) 
A family from Cuba is detained and loaded onto a bus with tinted windows and bars following an appearance at immigration court on June 11, 2025, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)
Lawyers for the civil rights groups allege ICE officers go to immigration court with a list of attendees. When an individual is called to appear before the judge, DHS attorneys move to dismiss their case, which some immigration judges immediately grant.
With their cases dismissed, attendees are then left to face ICE officers waiting at the courthouse, who can arrest and detain them on the spot.
The lawsuit contends those speedy decisions, consistent with new Executive Office for Immigration Review guidance, are “depriving noncitizens of their rights.”
Even if a judge denies dismissal, DHS has authorized ICE officers to arrest immigrants and begin expedited removal proceedings, often involving moving the arrestee far from their court location.
“In plain terms, DHS is disregarding both immigration judges who permit noncitizens an opportunity to oppose dismissal and the pendency of an appeal of the dismissal decision,” the coalition said.
The suit asks a federal judge to block a series of Trump policies allowing these expedited proceedings, which they call unlawful and claim violate the U.S. Constitution.