America's top judicial body agrees to review lawsuit questioning birthright citizenship.
The US Supreme Court has decided to review a pivotal case that questions a historic principle: guaranteed citizenship for individuals born in the United States.
On day one in office this winter, the administration issued an executive order aiming to end this practice, but the order was subsequently blocked by federal courts after lawsuits were filed.
The Supreme Court's ultimate judgment will either affirm citizenship rights for the children of migrants who are in the US without authorization or on non-immigrant visas, or it will nullify them completely.
Next, the judges will calendar a session to hear oral arguments between the administration and plaintiffs, which comprise immigrant parents and their newborns.
A Constitutional Cornerstone
For more than 150 years, the 14th Amendment has enshrined the doctrine that every person born in the United States is a citizen, with specific conditions for children born to diplomats and personnel of invading forces.
"Anyone born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States."
The contested presidential order sought to withhold citizenship to the offspring of people who are whether in the US without legal status or are in the country on temporary visas.
The United States is one of about three dozen nations – primarily in the North and South America – that award immediate citizenship to anyone born on their soil.
