High court paves the way for multimillion-dollar compensation claims to NZYQ cohort in blow to government

The full bench of the high court has ruled against the federal government after it unlawfully held Austrian citizen Safwat Abdel-Hady in detention. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP View image in fullscreen The full bench of the high court has ruled against the federal government after it unlawfully held Austrian citizen Safwat Abdel-Hady in detention. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP High court paves the way for multimillion-dollar compensation claims to NZYQ cohort in blow to government Australian human rights lawyers and refugee advocacy groups are lauding the decision as a ‘significant outcome’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Millions of dollars in compensation could be paid out to more than 350 unlawful non-citizens held in indefinite detention after the high court ruled against the Australian government. The ruling marks another blow for the Albanese government after its requirement that members of the NZYQ cohort released to wear ankle monitoring bracelets and abide by curfews were struck down as unconstitutional earlier this year. Human rights lawyers and refugee advocacy groups have lauded the “foreseeable” decision as a “significant outcome”. On Wednesday, the full bench of the high court ruled unanimously against the federal government’s attempt to mount a defence against a damages claim brought by Austrian citizen, Safwat Abdel-Hady , paving the way for potentially hundreds more cases. Abdel-Hady was unlawfully held in immigration detention for an 18-month period between 28 July 2022 to 13 February 2024 because there was “no real prospect” of his removal due to his health conditions, the federal circuit court found in June 2024. Lawyers for the businessman had argued he should not have been detained by authorities using the precedent established in the 2004 high court case of Al-Kateb, which authorised indefinite detention of non-citizens without a valid visa even in circumstances where it is impossible to deport them. The ruling was overturned in a landmark decision in November 2023 , brought by a stateless Rohingya man, known as NZYQ, triggering the release of hundreds of non-citizens who couldn’t be removed from Australia because they were refugees or stateless. The Commonwealth had attempted to defend against Abdel-Hady’s damages claims using a common law defence – that it was following the precedent set out by the high court in the 2004 Al-Kateb ruling. All seven high court justices ruled against the Commonwealth, with Justice Michelle Gordon saying it would “significantly undermine the ability of a person to obtain redress where the executive exceeds its authority”. “That door should remain closed,” Gordon said. A government spokesperson said: “The Commonwealth notes the decision of the high court and is carefully considering the judgment and its implications.” Greg Barns SC, a spokesperson for the Australian Lawyers Alliance, said he estimated the bill for t