Spring JPA Query returns Null instead of List

Question

The normal behavior is indeed returning an empty list if no results are found. If a List<Object> is the return value of the method in the defined interface, the method should never return Null.
The problem is that a parameter is given to the method and is not used anywhere in the Query. For some reason Spring decides to return a Null in that case. Solution: remove the unused parameter or use the parameter in the Query.