FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
BOSTON — A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction just before midnight last night to stop the Trump administration from revoking people’s legal status under the Family Reunification Parole (FRP) program while litigation in Svitlana Doe v. Noem proceeds. This comes after the judge issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) on January 10 that temporarily blocked the administration from separating those families for 14 days.
More than 8,400 future green card holders faced losing lawful status and work authorization after the Trump administration announced in mid-December 2025 that it would prematurely revoke their parole. Green card holders and U.S. citizen sponsors were left scrambling to gain clarity for their immigrant family members who had already shown eligibility for future green cards. The court heard arguments from the government and from attorneys for plaintiffs earlier this month.
“Today’s ruling reaffirms that the Trump administration cannot ignore our nation’s laws in order to rip immigrant families apart,” said Esther Sung, legal director of Justice Action Center. “We are talking about people who have done everything the U.S. government has asked of them and who, in many cases, are mere weeks or months from finally receiving their green cards. These families should be able to live their lives and pursue their immigration cases peacefully and without fear that they will be ripped away from their loved ones.”
Among other findings, the court’s opinion noted that plaintiffs were likely to succeed on their claims that the administration’s manner of terminating FRP parole was arbitrary and capricious and that the government had failed to provide FRP beneficiaries with sufficient notice that their grants of parole would be prematurely terminated. In describing the plight facing this particular group of people, the opinion noted, “FRP Parolees have arrived in the United States after a long process, following all directives from USCIS, to obtain lawful permanent residence in this country…many parolees, upon receiving approval to travel to the United States and seek parole, prepare for a permanent move.”
“The Trump administration cannot be allowed to strip people of their legal rights arbitrarily, and we are relieved that the judge recognized this in her ruling,” said Anwen Hughes, senior director of legal strategy and legal initiatives at Human Rights First. “Today’s preliminary injunction means that the Trump administration cannot de-legalize thousands of immigrants throughout the country who have done everything the U.S. government asked of them in order to be here. Most importantly, it means that families will get to remain together and build their futures without being unjustly ripped apart.”
On December 29, 2025, Justice Action Center and Human Rights First rushed into court on behalf of family members of U.S. citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents waiting to become eligible to apply for green cards whose parole status would have been revoked on January 14, 2026. These people, who entered the United States under FRP, are represented by five new plaintiffs added to Svitlana Doe v. Noem, the class action lawsuit filed on behalf of humanitarian parole beneficiaries, sponsors, and Haitian Bridge Alliance. The plaintiffs had asked the court to block the Trump administration’s Federal Register Notice revoking FRP beneficiaries’ lawful status and to allow the plaintiffs to incorporate this effort into their existing lawsuit to protect parole.
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Justice Action Center (JAC) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to fighting for greater justice for immigrant communities by combining litigation and storytelling. JAC is committed to bringing additional litigation resources to address unmet needs, empower clients, and change the corrosive narrative around immigrants in the U.S. Learn more at justiceactioncenter.org and follow us on Bluesky Twitter/X, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
Human Rights First is a nonprofit, nonpartisan international human rights organization based in Los Angeles, New York, and Washington D.C. For nearly 50 years, Human Rights First has worked to create a just world in which every person’s intrinsic human rights are respected and protected. Learn more at humanrightsfirst.org and follow us on Twitter/X, Bluesky, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
NOTE: A previous version of this statement listed “More than 10,000 future green card holders” and has been corrected to “More than 8400”.