America's top judicial body agrees to consider lawsuit disputing birthright citizenship.
The nation's highest court has will hear a pivotal case that questions a longstanding principle: birthright citizenship for individuals born on American soil.
On his first day in office this winter, the President enacted a directive aiming to halt this practice, but the order was struck down by federal courts after lawsuits were initiated.
The Supreme Court's eventual judgment will either support citizenship rights for the infants of immigrants who are in the US without authorization or on non-immigrant visas, or it will nullify the provision entirely.
Next, the judges will schedule a date to hear the case between the government and plaintiffs, which comprise parents who are immigrants and their newborns.
The 14th Amendment
For nearly 160 years, the Constitutional amendment has enshrined the principle that every person born in the nation is a US citizen, with specific conditions for children born to diplomats and members of occupying armies.
"Every individual 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 children of people who are either 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 30 countries – mostly in the Americas – that grant instant citizenship to any person born on their soil.
