The nation's highest court agrees to consider lawsuit questioning automatic citizenship for those born in the US.

The US Supreme Court has will hear a significant case that puts to the test a historic constitutional right: guaranteed citizenship for individuals born within US borders.

On his first day in office this winter, President Donald Trump issued an executive order aiming to end this practice, but the action was struck down by the judiciary after constitutional questions were filed.

The Supreme Court's final ruling will ultimately affirm citizenship rights for the children of immigrants who are in the US without authorization or on non-immigrant visas, or it will nullify those rights entirely.

Next, the court will schedule a date to hear the case between the administration and plaintiffs, which include foreign-born parents and their newborns.

The Legal Foundation

For more than 150 years, the 14th Amendment has enshrined the doctrine that every person born in the country is a citizen, with certain exclusions for children born to diplomats and personnel of foreign military forces.

"All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States."

The challenged directive 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 – mostly in the Americas – that provide automatic citizenship to anyone born within their borders.