America's top judicial body agrees to hear lawsuit questioning citizenship by birth.
The top court has will hear a landmark case that puts to the test a longstanding principle: guaranteed citizenship for those born within US borders.
On day one in office this winter, the President enacted a directive aiming to end the policy, but the order was struck down by federal courts after lawsuits were initiated.
The Supreme Court's final judgment will either support citizenship rights for the offspring of foreign nationals who are in the US without authorization or on short-term permits, or it will overturn the provision entirely.
Next, the court will schedule a date to hear oral arguments between the federal government and the suing parties, which involve foreign-born parents and their infants.
A Constitutional Cornerstone
For nearly 160 years, the Fourteenth Amendment has enshrined the principle that every person born in the country is a citizen, with exceptions for children born to diplomats and personnel 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 presidential order sought to withhold citizenship to the children of people who are whether in the US without legal status or are in the country on temporary visas.
The United States belongs to a group of about 30 countries – primarily in the North and South America – that grant immediate citizenship to anyone born within their borders.
