Traditional Owners - Nyiyaparli People and Minister for Health Indigenous Affairs

The Traditional Owners – Nyiyaparli People sought a review of the Minister for Health and Ageing's decision not to grant consent to the proponent of proposed works to carry out works on land within the area of their registered native title claim. The applicant argued that they had standing to seek the review, as they were the "owner of any land" within the meaning of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act 1984 (Cth). The court considered whether the right to seek a review of the Minister's decision was confined to the proponent of the works who was aggrieved by the Minister's decision or whether it extended to other parties, such as the Traditional Owners.

The court found that the right to seek a review of the Minister's decision was only available to the proponent of the works who was aggrieved by the Minister's decision. The court held that the Traditional Owners did not have standing to seek a review of the Minister's decision as they were not the proponent of the works and were not aggrieved by the Minister's decision. The court found that the expression "owner of any land" in the Act did not include the Traditional Owners as it referred to the legal owner of the land, which in this case was the Commonwealth.

The court dismissed the Traditional Owners' application for review of the Minister's decision. The court held that the Traditional Owners did not have standing to seek a review of the Minister's decision as they were not the proponent of the works and were not aggrieved by the Minister's decision. The court found that the right to seek a review of the Minister's decision was only available to the proponent of the works who was aggrieved by the Minister's decision.