Wallace on behalf of the Boonthamurra People v State of Queensland

The Boonthamurra people brought a claim for native title determination in the Federal Court. The dispute involved the existence, continuity, and nature of their native title rights over certain lands. The court was required to decide whether the Boonthamurra people constituted a society with a body of laws and customs, whether these rights and interests were held in accordance with their traditional laws and customs, and if there was sufficient evidence of continuity between the pre-sovereignty and current societies.

The court found that the Boonthamurra people constituted a society united by a body of laws and customs. It determined that the Boonthamurra were comprised of land holding units, which had coalesced into the current claim group. The court further found that the principles of recruitment to the Boonthamurra were loosely patrifiliative, but the underlying principle was cognatic descent. The current society was effectively the same as the pre-sovereignty society, with rights and interests held pursuant to their traditional laws and customs. The connection with the claim area was established by their traditional laws and customs.

The court ordered that native title be determined in favour of the Boonthamurra people in accordance with the detailed determination made with these reasons. The determination would take effect upon the registration of certain agreements on the Register of Indigenous Land Use Agreements. If the agreements were not registered within six months of the date of the order, or any later time ordered by the Court, the matter was to be listed for further directions. Each party to the proceedings was to bear its own costs.