Native Title Law in Australia
In its 1992 decision in Mabo v Queensland (No. 2) [1992] HCA 23, the High Court of Australia rejected the doctrine that Australia was terra nullius, or land belonging to no-one, at the time of European settlement, and held that native title rights and interests held by Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders were capable of having endured since colonisation. The Australian Parliament passed the Native Title Act 1993 the following year.
In the first ten days of his placement, Jamie has assisted the Yindjibarndi Aboriginal Corporation at a Federal Court hearing on country in the Pilbara in Western Australia, in which Yindjibarndi witnesses and others have given lay evidence before Rares J. Expert anthropological evidence and legal submissions (including as to the effect on native title of pastoral leases and mining tenements granted since colonisation) will follow at a later date.. The principal Respondents to the claim are the State of Western Australia and Fortescue Metals Group, which runs mining operations in the claim area.
Jamie is currently in Perth working on ongoing aspects of the litigation, which include separate, but related, proceedings in the Supreme Court of Western Australia and tenure analysis.
Further updates about Jamie's placement will be posted on the website over the coming weeks. Jamie returns to Chambers on 16 November 2015.
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