7. LEGAL ARGUMENTS The legal arguments deployed in any litigation will be influenced by the most helpful framing for the case, but the choice of framing is also influenced by the legal arguments available before the particular jurisdiction that is the forum for the complaint. This section provides a summary of key arguments on the right to a nationality that may be derived from the different treaties, soft law documents, and decisions of international courts and other treaty bodies that can be drawn upon by lawyers litigating both before these instances, and at national level. The main focus is on international law, but national decisions are referenced where they are particularly significant. This section sets out legal resources to establish arguments in relation to: • The definition of “stateless person” and the determination of whether a person is stateless • The right of every child to acquire a nationality • Discrimination based on sex • Discrimination based on race, religion or ethnicity • The acquisition of nationality based on habitual residence • Arbitrary deprivation or denial of nationality • The interpretation of rules applied on state succession (transfer of sovereignty over a territory) • The right to birth registration • Dignity, legal identity, and recognition as a person before the law • Digitalisation of identity • Consequential violations such as freedom of movement, arbitrary detention, participation in public affairs and the right to family life u section 8 for resources on international law, comparative jurisprudence and other materials 7.1. The definition of stateless person and the determination that a person is stateless KEY MESSAGES • Determination of whether a person is stateless requires analysis not only of the relevant nationality laws, but also of related laws such as those governing the family, civil registration, identity documents, migration, consular registration and the recognition of foreign civil status certificates. • Determination of whether a person is stateless also requires analysis of the application of the laws in practice, including with reference to any secondary legislation (regulations or decrees), as well as internal departmental circulars, and documentation of administrative practice. • Based on this broader analysis, it may be possible to argue that a person is stateless even if they appear to be entitled to a nationality on the basis of a review only of the relevant nationality laws. The strongest limits in international law to state discretion in grant or recognition of nationality relate to the obligation to prevent and reduce statelessness. In many cases around recognition of nationality and issue of identity documents a preliminary question will therefore be to assess whether the complainant or group of complainants is stateless—in parallel with a discussion around the best framing for the case (u section 5.1: Issue framing). A determination of statelessness will also often be relevant in cases relating to deprivation of nationality or where a state seeks to deport a failed asylum-seeker or irregular migrant. The definition of stateless person is found in Article 1(1) of the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons: The term stateless person means a person who is not considered as a national by any state under the operation of its law. 54 U N H C R | L I T I G AT I N G T H E R I G H T T O A N AT I O N A L I T Y: A G U I D E F O R P R AC T I T I O N E R S