Mabo decision

03 June 1992

The High Court of Australia's decision on the Mabo Case rejected the doctrine of terra nullius, a legal principle that stated Australia did not belong to any one before Britain claimed sovereignty – ownership. The Mabo decision recognised in Australian law that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples' rights and interests to their land come from their traditional laws and customs. The Court found that the Meriam people continued to occupy their islands, as they had for generations before the first European contact, and were entitled to their lands. It opened the way for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to claim native title on their land.

The judgment was named after Edward ‘Eddie’ Koiki Mabo who, along with Sam Passi, David Passi, Celuia Mapo Salee and James Rice, fought for recognition of the Meriam people’s traditional ownership of Mer (also known as Murray Island) – an island in the Torres Strait. In response to the historic decision, the Australian Parliament passed the Native Title Act 1993. The debate on the bill was one of the longest held in the Senate – it went for 51 hours and 49 minutes. The Act established the procedure for making native title claims and set up the National Native Title Tribunal.