The Pentagon has approved the transfer of some of its military and civilian lawyers to the Justice Department to serve as temporary immigration judges, the Defense Department confirmed to The Hill on Tuesday.

Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said the Department of Justice requested that the Pentagon identify “qualified Judge Advocates and civilian attorneys for details to serve as Temporary Immigration Judges.”

Parnell said the DOD attorneys are meant to help deal with a backlog of DOJ cases by presiding over immigration hearings, but did not offer how many or when they would be identified for such roles.

“The Department remains committed to continuing our support for our interagency partners, bringing the skill and dedication of America’s service members and civil servants to deliver justice, restore order, and protect the American people,” he said in a statement.

The Associated Press first reported on an Aug. 27 memo that stipulated DOD will begin sending groups of 150 attorneys to the DOJ “as soon as practicable,” and that the military services should have the first round of people identified by next week.

The Trump administration has increasingly used the military to aid in its campaign against illegal immigration via ramped-up arrests and deportations. Roughly 10,000 troops patrol the U.S.-Mexico border, National Guard troops have been sent into Los Angeles to aid federal agents with immigration raids, and numerous military bases house people awaiting deportations. 

But the spike in arrests has put a strain on immigration courts that for years were already struggling with massive backlogs of cases.

The Pentagon memo stipulates that military lawyers will serve as immigration judges for no more than 179 days, but that can be renewed, according to the AP.

The memo further says that reserve officers may be mobilized for such roles.