NJ Leads Multistate Lawsuit Against Executive Order Ending Birthright Citizenship

NEW JERSEY - In a swift legal response to President Donald Trump’s newly issued executive order seeking to end birthright citizenship, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin has filed a lawsuit—joined by 18 states, the District of Columbia, and the City of San Francisco—challenging the measure’s constitutionality. The coalition contends that by stripping children born in the U.S. of automatic citizenship, the order directly defies the Fourteenth Amendment and longstanding Supreme Court precedent.

“President Trump’s attempt to unilaterally end birthright citizenship is a flagrant violation of our Constitution,” said Attorney General Platkin. “For more than 150 years, our country has followed the same basic rule: babies who are born in this country are American citizens. New Jersey is a proud state of immigrants, and we benefit tremendously from the contributions of birthright citizens—in our state and across the country. State Attorneys General have been preparing for illegal actions like this one, and today’s immediate lawsuit sends a clear message to the Trump Administration that we will stand up for our residents and their basic constitutional rights.”

Key Allegations

• Unconstitutional and Unlawful: The states’ lawsuit asserts that children born on American soil cannot be deprived of citizenship, regardless of their parents’ immigration status.
• Broad Societal Impact: If allowed to stand, the order could leave “thousands of babies born each year in New Jersey” without rights such as lawful employment, voting, and accessing federal benefits.
• Financial Burden on States: New Jersey and other plaintiffs argue they will bear significant administrative and financial strains—like reconfiguring Medicaid, foster care, and other programs—if citizenship rules abruptly change.

“The Constitution could not be more clear: citizenship of children born in the United States does not depend on the citizenship of their parents. That principle is fundamental to who we are as a nation and what it means to be an American,” said Governor Phil Murphy. “Yesterday’s announcement about birthright citizenship flouts the Constitution and will needlessly harm families who are lawfully present in the United States until it is inevitably overturned by the courts. We will not waver in our efforts to protect the rights of all who call New Jersey home.”

For over 150 years, birthright citizenship has been enshrined in American law. Stemming from the post-Civil War Fourteenth Amendment, courts have repeatedly affirmed that those born in the United States are citizens. The newly signed order, the states say, undermines that foundational principle for the first time since 1868.

The coalition has filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, requesting both a Temporary Restraining Order and a Preliminary Injunction to halt the measure while the case proceeds. The states emphasize that the executive order violates both Section 1401 of the Immigration and Nationality Act and two Supreme Court rulings that firmly protect birthright citizenship.

“The Trump administration’s proposal to deny children born in this country citizenship is not only cruel, it goes against our very foundation as Americans,” said Human Services Commissioner Sarah Adelman. “Here in New Jersey, we take pride in our diversity and understand the role immigration has played in shaping our country. We will not let this go without a fight, and I am proud to stand with Governor Murphy and Attorney General Platkin to defend the rights of all Americans.”

In New Jersey, the matter is being handled by Solicitor General Jeremy Feigenbaum alongside Deputy Solicitor General Shankar Duraiswamy and a team of deputy attorneys general. They are joined by partner states including California, Massachusetts, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin, as well as the District of Columbia and City of San Francisco. As the legal battle commences, officials aim to preserve what they consider a fundamental constitutional right for American-born children.

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