Mudgee Local Aboriginal Land Council v Attorney-General of New South Wales

The case Mudgee Local Aboriginal Land Council v Attorney General of New South Wales, heard in the Federal Court of Australia, involved a non-claimant application for a declaration that no native title exists in certain land at Mudgee. The Mudgee Local Aboriginal Land Council, the current owner of the land, sought the declaration to enable it to make a development application for the land. The legal issues before the court included whether the applicant had satisfied the conditions for making the application under the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth) and whether there was sufficient evidence to conclude that no native title existed in the land. The court considered affidavits from local Aboriginal elders who asserted that they had not identified any connection between the land and traditional law and customs, and that the land was of low cultural significance. Justice Jagot found that the applicant had discharged the onus of proof and made the declaration that no native title exists in the land in question.

In reaching its decision, the court examined the evidence provided by the applicant, which included affidavits from local Aboriginal elders who stated that they were not aware of any special significance or importance of the land under traditional law and custom. The court also noted that the Wellington Valley Wiradjuri People had previously made a native title claim in relation to the land, but had not applied to be joined as parties to this proceeding. The court accepted the evidence of the local Aboriginal elders as sufficient to establish the absence of a group holding native title rights and interests in the land. The court also noted that the Attorney-General neither consented to nor opposed the application. The court ultimately made the declaration that no native title exists in the land described in the application.