US Supreme Court agrees to hear lawsuit disputing birthright citizenship.
The nation's highest court has agreed to take on a pivotal case that puts to the test a longstanding principle: automatic citizenship for people born within US borders.
On the inaugural day in office this January, President Donald Trump signed an order aiming to end birthright citizenship, but the order was struck down by lower courts after constitutional questions were initiated.
The Supreme Court's ultimate decision will ultimately support citizenship rights for the children of immigrants who are in the US without authorization or on non-immigrant visas, or it will end those rights entirely.
Next, the judges will schedule a date to hear arguments between the federal government and claimants, which include immigrant parents and their newborns.
The Legal Foundation
For nearly 160 years, the Fourteenth Amendment has enshrined the rule that all individuals born in the nation is a American citizen, with specific conditions for children born to foreign diplomats and members of foreign military forces.
"Every individual born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States."
The contested directive sought to withhold citizenship to the children of people who are whether in the US in violation of immigration law or are in the country on non-permanent visas.
The United States belongs to a group of about a minority of states – mostly in the North and South America – that grant automatic citizenship to all those born in their territory.
