A German administrative decision, such as a building permit, can usually be challenged by an objection within one month. After that, the decision becomes bestandskräftig. The word has no exact English equivalent. It means that the decision now binds both the authority and the person it is addressed to, and that it can no longer be challenged with ordinary legal remedies. The authority may still withdraw or revoke it in certain cases, and the case can be reopened on application. For decisions of the Federal Constitutional Court, the law states the binding effect directly: they bind the constitutional bodies of the federation and the states, and all courts and authorities.