The priests had wanted to give communion to the detained migrants.
"We will file a lawsuit to assert our right as clergy and religious to minister to all people in these facilities," said Jesuit Larry Dowling, according to a report in the National Catholic Reporter on Tuesday. "We will continue to peacefully fight this with all the tools at our disposal and fight for what is right."
Dowling, a retired clergyman of the Archdiocese of Chicago, and his confreres want to assert their right to provide pastoral care to prisoners.
The background to this is a procession last weekend to the detention centre in Broadview. The aim of the action was to bring communion to migrants without valid residence papers.
According to the Jesuits, the procession was peaceful, but the authorities denied the priests entry after the Illinois State Police made an appeal at the scene.
The organisers explained that they had tried to communicate with ICE in advance about the planned visit - but the group was still denied access.
"Holy protests"
Dowling was disappointed by the authorities' actions: "Until three or four months ago, we could do this and they allowed us to. But under the current government, that's all over. They don't want anyone to go in there, see the terrible conditions and offer help to the people they are holding."
The movement gained momentum after the incident.
In addition to the legal action announced, training and further "sacred protests" are also planned to fight back against the "erosion of faith and human rights by federal immigration policies".