A group of 39 undocumented students, who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children, is petitioning the Georgia Supreme Court to grant them access to in-state tuition at colleges and universities within the state.

Although the students lack citizenship, they qualify for President Barack Obama's 2012 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA,) which allows them to stay in the U.S. for at least two years without fear of deportation. The young people, who are affectionately known as "Dreamers," argue that they should also be considered legal state residents and, therefore, receive in-statue tuition rates under DACA, reports the Associated Press.

However, the Georgia Board of Regents, which runs Georgia's colleges, say their temporary permission to stay in the country does not verify that they have "lawful presence" in the U.S. As a result, they are disqualified from seeking in-state status for tuition purposes.

Last year, the Dreamers filed a lawsuit against the Regents. In response, lawyers representing the state not only argued that the young people do not have "lawful status," but that the Board of Regents is protected from the lawsuit under the principle of sovereign immunity, which shields the state and state agencies from lawsuits. The only way that the state can be used is when the General Assembly waives that protection.

A Fulton County Superior Court judge in June 2014 agreed that Dreamers do have legal status to be considered residents, and dismissed the case. The state Court of Appeals then upheld the lower court's dismissal in March 2015.

Now the young immigrants are asking Georgia's Supreme Court to weigh in on the case and decide whether or not the board is protected by sovereign immunity. The Dreamers are also asking the Superior Court for a ruling on the merits of the lawsuit.

Georgia's highest court is set to hear arguments in the case on Oct. 16 in a special session at the Gilmer County Courthouse in Ellijay.

If the court rules in favor of the students, then they would save thousands of dollars in tuition. In the meantime, a lawyer representing the plaintiffs say the immigrants are either not going to school or going only part time due to cost, reports Creative Loafing.