Conlon v QGC Pty Ltd (No 2)

Conlon v QGC Pty Ltd (No 2) is a case in the Federal Court of Australia that involved a dispute regarding the validity and efficacy of an unregistered deed as a variation of an Indigenous Land Use Agreement (ILUA) registered under the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth). The primary issue the court had to decide was whether an unregistered deed could vary a registered ILUA and if it required registration under section 24CL to be effective. Furthermore, the court had to determine if the original authorisation under section 251A allowed a majority of the persons defined as the native title party to agree to new terms that varied the registered ILUA. Another significant issue was whether a clause in the registered ILUA permitted the majority of the native title party to vary it without further authorisation by the claim group under section 251A.

The court reasoned that an amendment deed could not supervene the contractual force of a registered ILUA. The court held that a variation, such as the one attempted by the deed, must be an ILUA and must go through the registration process under section 24CL. However, the deed lacked authorisation under section 251A, which was necessary to qualify as an ILUA. The court concluded that the deed was not an ILUA under the Act, had no force or effect, and did not vary or impact the contractual force of the ILUA as registered. The court found no basis for making an order regarding costs under section 85A(1) of the Act.

The court’s conclusion was based on the statutory requirement that an ILUA must be registered to have contractual effect, and any variation must also be registered. The court found that the deed did not meet these requirements, and thus, it did not alter the terms of the registered ILUA. Consequently, the deed was ineffective and did not change the obligations or rights established by the original ILUA. The court’s decision underscores the importance of following the legislative process for amending registered ILUAs to ensure their validity and enforceability.