Griffith Local Aboriginal Land Council v Attorney General of New South Wales [2020] FCA 1501

Griffith Local Aboriginal Land Council v Attorney General of New South Wales [2020] FCA 1501

The vesting of the subject land in fee simple by the Crown in 1912, prior to the commencement of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 (Cth), constituted a previous exclusive possession act under s 23B of the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth), which wholly extinguished any native title rights at common law and for the purposes of the Act; the applicant had satisfied all procedural and substantive requirements, and there was no opposition to the order sought.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
16 October 2020
Procedural Posture
Non Claimant Native Title Determination Application / Judgment on Unopposed Application, Determined on the Papers
Outcome
Application granted. Determination that no native title exists in the subject land.
Legal Topics
['extinguishment of Native Title' 'previous Exclusive Possession Act (pepa)' 'jurisdiction and Standing Under the Native Title Act 1993 (cth)' 'notification Requirements for Non Claimant Applications' 'burden of Proof for Extinguishment of Native Title']
['native Title'] ['extinguishment of Native Title' 'previous Exclusive Possession Act (pepa)' 'jurisdiction and Standing Under the Native Title Act 1993 (cth)' 'notification Requirements for Non Claimant Applications' 'burden of Proof for Extinguishment of Native Title']

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Procedural Posture

Non Claimant Native Title Determination Application / Judgment on Unopposed Application, Determined on the Papers

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['Whether a previous exclusive possession act (PEPA) extinguished native title over the subject land' 'Whether procedural requirements under the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth) were met to justify a negative determination of native title' 'Whether it is appropriate to grant a non-claimant application order that native title does not exist']

Ratio Decidendi

The vesting of the subject land in fee simple by the Crown in 1912, prior to the commencement of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 (Cth), constituted a previous exclusive possession act under s 23B of the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth), which wholly extinguished any native title rights at common law and for the purposes of the Act; the applicant had satisfied all procedural and substantive requirements, and there was no opposition to the order sought.

Court Disposition

Application granted. Determination that no native title exists in the subject land.

Orders

  • ['No native title exists in the land described as Lot 2 in Deposited Plan 1237419, located in the Local Government Area of Griffith, Parish of Jondaryan, County of Cooper, New South Wales.']