US Supreme Court agrees to hear case questioning citizenship by birth.
The nation's highest court has agreed to take on a landmark case that questions a longstanding constitutional right: guaranteed citizenship for individuals born in the United States.
On day one in office this January, President Donald Trump enacted a directive aiming to end this practice, but the action was subsequently blocked by lower courts after constitutional questions were filed.
The Supreme Court's ultimate judgment will ultimately uphold citizenship rights for the infants of immigrants who are in the US illegally or on temporary visas, or it will overturn the provision entirely.
Next, the judges will set a time to hear arguments between the federal government and the suing parties, which comprise foreign-born parents and their newborns.
The 14th Amendment
For nearly 160 years, the 14th Amendment has enshrined the principle that all individuals born in the nation is a American 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 disputed presidential order sought to deny citizenship to the offspring of people who are either in the US illegally or are in the country on short-term status.
The United States is one of about three dozen nations – primarily in the North and South America – that award immediate citizenship to any person born in their territory.
