A federal judge has ordered officials at a Florida immigration detention facility to improve attorney access to detained clients, ruling on multiple restrictions that had limited legal representation.

U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell of the Middle District of Florida issued the ruling Friday, directing facility officials to provide detainees with access to confidential, private, and unmonitored outgoing legal telephone calls at no cost. The order addresses concerns about barriers to legal communication within the state-run immigration jail.

The judge also ruled that attorneys must be permitted to make unannounced visits to see their clients, eliminating the facility's previous requirement that all legal visits be scheduled in advance. This change is intended to ensure more immediate access to legal counsel for immigration detainees.

The facility, which houses immigration detainees, has been the subject of legal challenges regarding conditions and access to legal services. The ruling comes amid broader scrutiny of detention conditions at immigration facilities nationwide.

The order requires facility officials to implement these changes to ensure compliance with detainees' rights to legal representation. Immigration attorneys had argued that the previous restrictions impeded their ability to effectively represent clients in removal proceedings and other immigration matters.