For the fourth time in recent months, the Trump administration is asking the Supreme Court to bypass lower courts and rule on a controversial proposal.

The newest case involves the Pentagon's policy of restricting military service by transgender people.

It's rare for the justices on the nation's highest court to intervene early as the Trump administration has been pressing them to do.

In the military case, the administration argues that the Supreme Court should step in before an appeals court rules, because the case involves the authority of the US military to determine who may serve in the armed forces.

Other recent cases marked for speed-up involve a programme that shields young immigrants from deportation, a climate change lawsuit, and a lawsuit over a citizenship question on the 2020 census.