The nation's highest court will hear lawsuit disputing automatic citizenship for those born in the US.

The US Supreme Court has agreed to take on a pivotal case that questions a century-old constitutional right: automatic citizenship for people born within US borders.

On the inaugural day in office this January, President Donald Trump signed an order aiming to halt this practice, but the action was struck down by the judiciary after legal challenges were initiated.

The Supreme Court's ultimate judgment will ultimately affirm citizenship rights for the children of immigrants who are in the US without authorization or on temporary visas, or it will end the provision completely.

Next, the justices will set a time to hear arguments between the administration and plaintiffs, which include foreign-born parents and their young children.

A Constitutional Cornerstone

For more than 150 years, the Fourteenth Amendment has codified the rule that all individuals born in the country is a citizen, with exceptions for children born to foreign diplomats and members of occupying armies.

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

The challenged executive order sought to refuse citizenship to the offspring of people who are whether in the US without legal status or are in the country on non-permanent visas.

The United States belongs to a group of about three dozen nations – largely in the Americas – that grant immediate citizenship to any person born on their soil.