State of Queensland v Congoo & Ors

The High Court of Australia considered an appeal by the State of Queensland against a decision of the Queensland Court of Appeal concerning native title. The dispute arose from the State's grant of a mining lease over an area in Queensland, which the respondents, Congoo and others, claimed was native title land. The core of the disagreement lay in whether the grant of the mining lease extinguished the native title rights and interests of the respondents.

The High Court was required to determine whether the grant of the mining lease by the State of Queensland extinguished the native title rights and interests of the respondents. Specifically, the Court had to consider the application of s 225 of the *Native Title Act 1993* (Cth) and the principles of extinguishment of native title by the grant of a future act, such as a mining lease, under the *Native Title Act*.

The Court reasoned that the grant of a mining lease under Queensland legislation, which conferred exclusive rights to mine, necessarily extinguished any native title rights and interests that were inconsistent with those exclusive rights. Applying established principles of native title law, the Court held that the exclusive possession granted by the mining lease was incompatible with the continued existence of native title rights and interests in the same area. Therefore, the grant of the mining lease resulted in the extinguishment of the respondents' native title.

The High Court allowed the appeal, setting aside the decision of the Queensland Court of Appeal.