If the Trump administration gets their way, volunteers and non-profit groups - rather than government officials - would take the lead in finding more than 400 immigrant parents deported after being separated from their children at the border.

In a court filing Thursday, Justice Department lawyers said the government would give what information it had about the deported parents to the American Civil Liberties Union.

They wrote that the ACLU should use their considerable resources and vast network to establish contact with deported parents and determine their wishes.

The ACLU is not shying away from helping… but the group made it clear it expects the government to bear ultimate responsibility.

More than 1,900 children have been reunited with their families, or seen their cases resolved in other ways...BUT hundreds remain separated as a result of President Trump's 'zero tolerance' immigration policy back in May.

A federal judge in San Diego will hold a hearing on Friday to discuss the ongoing reunification efforts.

And he's expected to decide soon when to lift a stay that prohibits rapid deportation of reunited families.