On Inauguration Day, President Trump signed an Executive Order attempting to reinterpret the 14th Amendment to deny birthright citizenship to children born to immigrant parents unless at least one parent is a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident. ICAP responded immediately, filing a lawsuit on behalf of pregnant mothers and members of CASA and the Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project (ASAP). The suit argues that the order violates the plain text of the Constitution and contradicts over a century of binding Supreme Court precedent establishing that all persons born on U.S. soil are citizens.
On February 5, 2025, ICAP secured the first preliminary injunction against the birthright citizenship Executive Order. Then, after the Supreme Court limited universal injunctions, ICAP pivoted within hours, filing an amended class-action complaint to ensure that protection was not restricted to the named plaintiffs. On August 7, 2025, the district court granted ICAP’s motion, certifying a nationwide class and enjoining the government from enforcing the order. Through this swift and strategic litigation, ICAP has preserved the fundamental right to citizenship for hundreds of thousands of children across the country. ICAP’s case was stayed pending appeals taken in other cases also challenging the birthright citizenship Executive Order. On June 30, 2026, in Trump v. Barbara (25-365), the United States Supreme Court declared that the Executive Order was unconstitutional, thus guaranteeing birthright citizenship to all children born in the United States.
Following the Supreme Court’s ruling in Barbara, President Trump issued a second Executive Order purporting to again limit birthright citizenship. ICAP moved for a new preliminary injunction to stop enforcement of the 2026 Executive Order against the members of the certified class, whom the Supreme Court had already held were citizens. On September 2, 2026, ICAP secured the first preliminary injunction against the 2026 Executive Order.
