Federal Judge Blocks Trump Executive Order Targeting Birthright Citizenship

News Americas, New York, NY, February 13, 2025: A federal judge in Massachusetts today issued a preliminary injunction blocking a Trump Administration executive order that sought to strip birthright U.S. citizenship from children of immigrant parents.

Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell condemned President Trump’s executive order seeking to end birthright citizenship. Massachusetts and 17 other states have sued to block the order. (Photo by David L. Ryan)

The ruling, delivered by U.S. District Judge Leo T. Sorokin of the District of Massachusetts, comes in response to a lawsuit filed by Lawyers for Civil Rights on behalf of an expectant mother and two immigrant advocacy organizations – La Colaborativa and the Brazilian Worker Center.

In his decision, Judge Sorokin emphasized that the plaintiffs are likely to succeed in their case, stating that “the Constitution confers birthright citizenship broadly, including to persons within the categories described by the [Executive Order].” He further noted that the ruling is based on “straightforward application of settled Supreme Court precedent reiterated and reaffirmed in various ways for more than a century by all three branches of the federal government.”

Legal experts have long held that the U.S. Constitution’s Fourteenth Amendment guarantees birthright citizenship, a principle that has been upheld by the Supreme Court for over a century. The judge’s ruling ensures that the executive branch does not have unilateral power to redefine citizenship laws.

Oren Sellstrom, Litigation Director for Lawyers for Civil Rights, welcomed the court’s decision, stating, “Birthright citizenship is a sacred right granted by our Constitution, and the President cannot change that with the stroke of a pen.”

Mirian Albert, Senior Attorney for Lawyers for Civil Rights, added that the ruling prevents “significant harm” to immigrant communities, while Jacob Love, also a Senior Attorney, called it “a victory for the rule of law.”

The case, Doe et al. v. Trump et al., was considered alongside a related lawsuit brought by Massachusetts and a coalition of states (State of New Jersey et al. v. Trump et al.).

This decision represents a critical legal victory for immigrant families and reaffirms birthright citizenship as a fundamental constitutional right.