More than a century ago, the United States Supreme Court issued a decision establishing the principle of birthright citizenship. Many of us likely take for granted that we belong to this nation just as it belongs to us, without appreciating how a San Francisco native pressed his claim to our benefit. United States v. Wong Kim Ark has remained obscure, but the same contentions that were presented in the landmark case have continued to be important in controversies over who should be accepted as a member of our community.
Modern lawyers have much to learn about advocacy from Wong’s lawyers’ arguments. We can see how judges who are hostile to a client can still be won over through careful reasoning. Wong’s counsel conceded Wong’s parents had no rights that had to be respected. They won for Wong by demonstrating there was no means of distinguishing between Wong and others with whom the decision-makers more readily identified.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law are third party online distributors of the broad collection of current and archived versions of ALM's legal news publications. LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law customers are able to access and use ALM's content, including content from the National Law Journal, The American Lawyer, Legaltech News, The New York Law Journal, and Corporate Counsel, as well as other sources of legal information.
For questions call 1-877-256-2472 or contact us at [email protected]
