Case: Donald J. Trump, President of the United States, et al. v. Barbara, et al., No. 25-365
Lower Court: First Circuit
Docketed: 2025-09-29
Status: Granted
Question Presented: The Citizenship Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment provides that those "born * * * in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof," are U.S. citizens. U.S. Const. Amend. XIV, § 1. The Clause was adopted to confer citizenship on the newly freed slaves and their children, not on the children of aliens temporarily visiting the United States or of illegal aliens. On January 20, 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order No. 14,160, Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citize...
On March 19, 2026, the government filed its reply brief in Trump v. Barbara, completing the merits briefing cycle in one of the more consequential constitutional cases the Court has accepted in recent years. The reply brief's filing, distributed for conference the same day, signals that the case is positioned for oral argument. With 68 amicus briefs already on the docket, the Court is receiving input from a wide range of institutional voices, including faith-based organizations, race law scholars, and South Asian American advocacy groups.
The case arises from Executive Order 14,160, signed on January 20, 2025, which directs federal agencies to withhold citizenship documents from children born in the United States to parents who are either unlawfully present or present on temporary visas. The government petitioned for certiorari, and the Court granted review. As CBS News has reported, the case presents the Court with a direct opportunity to interpret the scope of the Citizenship Clause for the first time in the modern era.
The central legal question is whether the phrase "subject to the jurisdiction thereof" excludes children of temporary visitors and illegal aliens from birthright citizenship. The government's position draws on originalist arguments about the Clause's purpose in 1868. Respondents counter that the text and subsequent practice have long been understood to confer citizenship broadly. More information on the case history is available at Wikipedia's case page.
The Court's resolution will affect not only the validity of the executive order but also the interpretation of 8 U.S.C. § 1401(a), the statutory codification of birthright citizenship. Practitioners should watch whether the Court addresses the constitutional question directly or resolves the case on statutory grounds, which would leave the broader Fourteenth Amendment question open.