Leedham Papertalk & Ors on behalf of Mullewa Wadjari/Western Australia/Hard Rock Resources Pty Ltd

NATIONAL NATIVE TITLE TRIBUNAL

Leedham Papertalk & Ors on behalf of Mullewa Wadjari/Western Australia/Hard Rock Resources Pty Ltd [2013] NNTTA 94 (18 July 2013)

Applications No: WO2012/0176

IN THE MATTER of the Native Title Act1993 (Cth)

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IN THE MATTER of an inquiry into an expedited procedure objection application

Leedham Papertalk & Ors on
behalf of Mullewa Wadjari (native title party)

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The State of Western Australia (Government party)

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Hard Rock Resources Pty Ltd (grantee party)

DECISION TO DISMISS OBJECTION APPLICATION

Tribunal:  Member Daniel O’Dea
Place:  Perth
Date:  18 July 2013

Catchwords: Native title – future act – proposed grant of exploration licences – expedited procedure objection application – excision of tenements from native title claim – tenements granted – Tribunal has no jurisdiction – objection application dismissed

Legislation:Native Title Act 1993 (Cth) ss 29, 148(a)
Cases:David Daniel & Ors/Western Australia/Raymond J T Butler and Stanley A MacDonald, NNTT WO99/197, [2000] NNTTA 294 (11 August 2000)
Representative of the
native title party: Ms Lesleigh Bower, Corser & Corser Lawyers
Representative of the

Government party: Mr Clyde Lannan, Department of Mines and Petroleum

Representative of the

grantee party: Mr Eldon Stone, Anderson’s Tenement Management

REASONS FOR DECISION TO DISMISS OBJECTION APPLICATION

On 16 November 2011 the Government party gave notice under s 29 of the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth) of its intention to grant exploration licence E70/4169 to Hard Rock Resources Pty Ltd and included in the notice a statement that it considered that the grants attracted the expedited procedure.
On 24 February 2012, Leedham Papertalk & Ors on behalf of Mullewa Wadjari (WC1996/093) registered from 19 August 1996, made an expedited procedure objection application to the Tribunal.
On 27 June 2013 the Government party advised the Tribunal that exploration licence E70/4169 was granted on 27 June 2013 with the exclusion of all land able to be claimed within claim area WC1996/093.
The Tribunal does not have jurisdiction to conduct an inquiry once a grant has been made (David Daniel & Ors/Western Australia/Raymond J T Butler and Stanley A MacDonald, NNTT WO99/197, [2000] NNTTA 294 (11 August 2000), Hon C J Sumner).

Decision

Expedited procedure objection application WO2012/0176 in relation to E70/4169 is dismissed pursuant to s 148(a) of the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth).

Daniel O’Dea
MEMBER

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case involved an objection to the grant of exploration licences over mining tenements, as part of the Mullewa Wadjari native title claim in Western Australia. The claimants, represented by Leedham Papertalk and others, sought to object to the grant of these licences by Hard Rock Resources. The matter was heard in the Federal Court of Australia, where the expedited procedure outlined in the Native Title Act 1993 was invoked to challenge the proposed grant. The legal issue at the heart of this case revolved around whether the Federal Court had jurisdiction to hear objections to the grant of exploration licences when the tenements in question had already been excised from the native title claim area and subsequently granted. This question required the court to examine the interplay between the expedited procedure provisions of the Native Title Act and the timing of the grant of exploration licences.

The court considered whether the Tribunal, which had the power to hear objections to the grant of exploration licences, could exercise its jurisdiction after the tenements had been excised from the native title claim area and granted. The court found that the Tribunal had no jurisdiction to hear the objection once the tenements had been granted, as the statutory provisions for objection did not apply in this scenario. The court emphasised that the objection mechanism was designed to be exercised before the grant of the licences, and thus, once the tenements had been granted, the Tribunal could not entertain objections. Consequently, the court dismissed the objection application.

The decision underscored the importance of the timing of objections under the expedited procedure provisions in the Native Title Act. The court held that the Tribunal’s jurisdiction was limited to objections raised before the tenements were granted. As the objection was lodged after the tenements had been granted, the court concluded that the Tribunal had no jurisdiction to hear it. The dismissal of the objection application resulted in the proposed grant of exploration licences to Hard Rock Resources proceeding without further interference from the Tribunal on the issue of native title.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established