The nation's highest court has decided to consider lawsuit disputing birthright citizenship.

The top court has will hear a landmark case that puts to the test a longstanding principle: birthright citizenship for people born on American soil.

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

The Supreme Court's final judgment will either affirm citizenship rights for the infants of foreign nationals who are in the US illegally or on temporary visas, or it will end them completely.

Next, the judges will set a time to hear the case between the federal government and the suing parties, which comprise foreign-born parents and their infants.

A Constitutional Cornerstone

For more than 150 years, the 14th Amendment has enshrined the doctrine that anyone born in the United States is a citizen, with exceptions for children born to foreign diplomats and members of occupying armies.

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

The disputed executive order sought to withhold citizenship to the offspring of people who are whether in the US illegally or are in the country on non-permanent visas.

The United States belongs to a group of about a minority of states – largely in the Americas – that award automatic citizenship to anyone born in their territory.