The U.S. Supreme Court issued an order Friday saying it will take up the issue of whether the New York attorney general may depose U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross in its challenge to the Trump administration's plan to include a question on citizenship status in the 2020 census.

The nation's high court granted certiorari to a mandamus petition by the Department of Justice on Friday, setting a schedule for briefings beginning Dec. 17. Oral arguments in the case were scheduled for Feb. 19, 2019.

The Supreme Court's decision to take the dispute comes as the underlying challenge to the census question proceeds at trial in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

U.S. District Judge Jesse Furman declined DOJ requests to postpone the trial ahead of decisions from the Supreme Court, finding that any outcome from the trial would be undoubtedly appealed by the parties regardless. The trial has proceeded apace, despite the DOJ's fast-tracked higher court appellate process.

Currently, oral arguments in the bench trial over the legality of the plan to include the citizenship question rather than use administrative data is set for Nov. 27.

The Supreme Court has already played a pivotal role in the litigation. In October, the court stayed the ability for the plaintiffs, among them the New York Attorney General's Office, to depose Ross as part of the litigation. At that time the court indicated it would likely grant cert on the question of the New York attorney general's ability to depose the cabinet secretary.

Shortly thereafter, the Justice Department leapfrogged the U.S. Court Appeals for the Second Circuit and filed a mandamus petition with the Supreme Court. DOJ attorneys have asked the high court to decide whether Furman can order a wide scope of discovery to probe the decision-making process Ross navigated in formulating the census question.

Challengers argue the discovery is necessary to show that racial animus was at the core of seeking the citizenship status of all census respondents—a move they say would likely result in an under-count that will have a negative impact on communities.

“The trial record closed earlier today and we are confident in the strength of our case,” said the spokeswoman for New York Attorney General's Office. “The record clearly shows that the secretary's decision to demand citizenship status on the 2020 Census is illegal. It's important to note that the Supreme Court's decision to grant cert is specific to the question of extra-record discovery.”

The U.S. Justice Department press office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.