The Supreme Court issued a unanimous 9-0 ruling against a private prison company that contracts with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to detain undocumented immigrants earlier this week, and now legal experts are predicting more migrant-related headaches.
The decision may open the door for more lawsuits against privately-owned prisons that currently have contracts with ICE or other government agencies. The ruling comes after a lawsuit that has been in the courts for over a decade, The Daily Signal reported.
As a result of Wednesday’s ruling, detainees held for immigration reasons will continue to have the right to sue The GEO Group, the defendant in this case, for requiring them to work for just $1 per day. The company attempted to dismiss the lawsuit, citing its sovereign immunity as a government contractor with ICE.
The litigation dates back to 2014, when detainees held in Aurora, Colorado, alleged that they were forced to do janitorial and other work with little to no pay.
Justice Elena Kagan, writing for the unanimous majority, stated, “Nothing in the ICE contract’s terms instructed GEO to adopt the work rules at issue.”
The GEO Group manages 98 facilities, one of which in Newark, New Jersey, led to Mayor Ras Baraka’s arrest for protesting last year.
Alejandro Menocal, a detainee, initiated a class action lawsuit on behalf of the detainees at the Aurora facility. The lawsuit challenges two policies used by GEO to reduce labor costs. The plaintiffs claim that the company violated a federal law against forced labor as well as a Colorado law prohibiting unjust enrichment.
GEO defended its practices and initially sought to have the case dismissed, arguing that it was merely an ICE contractor. However, a district judge ruled in favor of the plaintiffs. Although Menocal did not win the case outright, he was granted the right to continue the litigation.
“If eventually found liable, GEO may of course appeal … But GEO must wait until then,” Kagan wrote.
All nine justices agreed with the decision, but Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito had differing views on the reasoning.
A lawyer who argued on behalf of the Colorado detainees applauded the ruling.
“The Supreme Court’s unanimous decision reaffirms a straightforward rule: government contractors like GEO do not qualify for sovereign immunity and must follow the same ‘one case, one appeal’ principle that governs every other litigant,” attorney Jennifer Bennett said, per the AP.
The GEO Group, based in Florida, is one of the leading private detention providers in the United States, managing or owning approximately 77,000 beds across 98 facilities. Among its contracts is a new federal immigration detention center, where Newark, New Jersey, Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested during a protest in May 2025. The charges against the Democrat were later dropped.
Similar lawsuits have been filed on behalf of immigration detainees in other locations, including a case in Washington state, where the company was ordered to pay over $23 million. It’s not clear if that ruling is under appeal.
A federal judge appointed by President Trump, meanwhile, found the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in civil contempt for violating a court order related to the transportation of a detainee in January.
In a ruling issued on Monday, Minnesota District Court Judge Eric C. Tostrud ordered the federal government to compensate the detainee, identified only as “Fernando T.,” for his return flight to Minnesota, Conservative Brief reported.
Tostrud noted that Fernando, a Mexican citizen, was released from the Texas detention facility in late January without his belongings. He expressed concerns that federal officials have not explained withholding Fernando’s belongings at the time of his release.
On January 19, Fernando filed a habeas corpus petition seeking either his release from custody or a bond hearing. The following day, he submitted a request for a temporary restraining order to prevent his transfer while his petition was under review.
In response, Tostrud issued an order prohibiting the federal government from moving the detainee. However, the federal government reported that it had transferred Fernando to a facility in El Paso, Texas, on January 22.
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