Griffiths v Northern Territory of Australia (No 3)

In Griffiths v Northern Territory of Australia (No 3), the applicants sought compensation under the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth) for the loss or impairment of their traditional rights and interests due to various acts by the respondent, the Northern Territory of Australia. The legal issues before the court included whether certain acts constituted acquisitions of property under the Constitution, the valuation of non-exclusive native title rights and interests, the assessment of non-economic loss, and the appropriateness of awarding pre-judgment interest.

The court held that the acts in question did not involve an acquisition of property inconsistent with the Constitution. It found that the non-exclusive native title rights and interests were impaired by certain category D past acts and extinguished by others. The court awarded compensation for the economic value of the extinguished rights, interest, and solatium. It determined that the solatium component was $1,300,000, reflecting the non-economic loss suffered by the native title holders. The court also awarded pre-judgment interest on the compensation amount.

The final orders of the court included the dismissal of the compensation application in relation to certain acts, the determination of the compensation payable for other acts, and the declaration that certain future acts were invalid. The court ordered that the compensation be paid to the prescribed body corporate on behalf of the native title holders and that the amount or kind of compensation to be given to each person be determined in accordance with the decision-making processes of the prescribed body corporate. The court further declared that native title existed in certain areas and that specific future acts were invalid.