Supreme Court Curbs Nationwide Injunctions 6-3, Narrowing the Blocks on Trump's Birthright Citizenship Order

On June 27, 2025, the Supreme Court decided Trump v. CASA, Inc., holding 6-3 that universal injunctions likely exceed the equitable authority Congress gave federal courts in the Judiciary Act of 1789. Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote for the majority, joined by Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch and Kavanaugh. The Court granted the government's applications for partial stays, narrowing the injunctions against the birthright-citizenship executive order so they protect only the named plaintiffs, and instructed district courts to tailor relief so it is no more burdensome to the defendant than necessary to give complete relief to the actual parties. Section 2 of the executive order was not to take effect for 30 days after the decision.

The ruling reshaped how any nationwide federal policy can be challenged, removing the single-district blocking mechanism that had halted many of the administration's 2025 initiatives and pushing challengers toward class actions and state-brought suits.

The Court expressly declined to decide whether the executive order violates the Fourteenth Amendment's Citizenship Clause or the Nationality Act. On July 10, 2025, a district court restored a nationwide block through a certified class action.