In a unanimous decision, the Court overturned Al-Kateb v Godwin (2004) and held that the indefinite detention of a person with no real prospect of removal from Australia is unconstitutional. The Court reaffirmed the Lim principle that executive detention under the aliens power must be for a legitimate non-punitive purpose and cannot continue when that purpose can no longer be fulfilled. The decision resulted in the immediate release of approximately 149 immigration detainees.