The Bush administration is back at the Supreme Court today to defend its indefinite detentions of foreign terrorism suspects at the US naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
At issue is whether the right to contest detention in US civilian courts, enshrined in the constitution, extends to the 305 men being held at Guantanamo as "enemy combatants." Some men have been held there nearly six years
It is the third time since 2004 that the Supreme Court has examined the administration's detention programme, and the justices have ruled against the administration in the two earlier cases.
Lawyers for the foreign detainees argue that the courts must step in to rein in the White House and Congress, which changed the law to keep the detainee cases out of US courts following earlier Supreme Court rulings.
The most recent legislation, last year's Military Commissions Act, strips federal courts of their ability to hear detainee cases.
The case could turn on whether the court decides that Guantanamo is essentially US soil, which would make the case for detainee rights stronger.
The United States has no plans to put most of those held at Guantanamo on trial. Just three detainees face charges under the Military Commissions Act, and the military has said it could prosecute as many as 80.