Exposure draft native title reforms

Closing date

10 December 2018

Update 3 February 2021
On 3 February 2021, the Australian Parliament passed the Native Title Legislation Amendment Bill 2020 into law. Find out more about the Bill on the Parliament of Australia website.

In 2018, the Attorney-General and Minister for Indigenous Affairs released exposure drafts of the Native Title Legislation Amendment Bill and the Registered Native Title Bodies Corporate Legislation Amendment Regulations for public comment.

The reforms are intended to improve the native title system for all parties. This includes:

streamlining claims resolution and agreement-making processes
supporting the capacity of native title holders through greater flexibility around internal decision‑making
increasing the transparency and accountability of prescribed bodies corporate (the corporations set up to manage native title) to the native title holders
improving pathways for dispute resolution following a determination of native title, and
ensuring the validity of section 31 agreements in light of the Full Federal Court of Australia's decision in McGlade v Native Title Registrar & Ors [2017] FCAFC 10.

Background

The exposure drafts are informed by the consultation earlier this year on an options paper for native title reform, which included recommendations from the Australian Law Reform Commission's report on 'Connection to Country', the Council of Australian Government's Investigation into Land Administration and Use, and other recent reviews.

Visit the Reforms to the Native Title Act 1993 page to read submissions responding to the 29 November 2017 options paper on native title reform.

Draft documents

The exposure drafts, factsheets summarising the key proposed reforms, and a public consultation paper setting out the policy objectives of these proposed reforms, can be found below:

Submissions

Submissions received for the Exposure draft native title reforms consultation

Submission

19 December 2018

Submissions responding to exposure drafts of the Native Title Legislation Amendment Bill 2018 and the Registered Native Title Bodies Corporate Legislation Amendment Regulations 2018.