Wik Peoples v State of Qld & Ors- Thayorre People v Stte of Qld

The High Court of Australia heard an appeal concerning native title claims brought by the Wik Peoples and the Thayorre People against the State of Queensland. The central dispute revolved around the extinguishment of native title rights and interests by the grant of pastoral leases over their traditional lands. The Wik Peoples claimed native title over an area in Cape York Peninsula, while the Thayorre People claimed native title over an area also in Cape York Peninsula.

The primary legal issue before the High Court was whether the grant of exclusive pastoral leases under Queensland legislation extinguished native title rights and interests, particularly the right to hunt, fish, and gather on the land. The court was required to determine the nature and extent of native title rights and interests and how they interacted with the rights conferred by a pastoral lease, specifically whether the latter was inconsistent with the continued existence of the former.

In his judgment, Brennan CJ considered the nature of native title as a burden on the Crown's underlying title and examined the effect of the grant of pastoral leases. His Honour concluded that the grant of a pastoral lease, which conferred exclusive possession of the land, was inconsistent with the continued existence of native title rights and interests. Therefore, the grant of such leases extinguished native title over the leased areas. This reasoning was based on the principle that where the rights granted by a lease are so extensive as to exclude all others, they necessarily extinguish any pre-existing rights that are incompatible with that exclusive possession.