Overview
- The justices will hear Trump v. Barbara on April 1, 2026, with lower-court injunctions in place and a ruling expected by late June.
- The order would end automatic citizenship for many U.S.-born babies by tying status to a parent’s immigration category and by defining mother and father as the child’s genetic progenitors.
- United States Solicitor D. John Sauer invokes Elk v. Wilkins to argue children of temporary visitors or people here illegally are not under full U.S. jurisdiction, while the ACLU relies on Wong Kim Ark to defend birthplace citizenship.
- A large amicus slate includes a February 26 filing from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops warning that curbing birthright citizenship risks statelessness for children and harms family stability.
- Legal analysts say the plan would exclude some children of long-term visa holders and refugees, force hospitals and agencies to police parents’ status, and trigger equal-protection challenges over different rules for mothers and fathers.