Native Title Act 1993

This section applies if the State Minister for a State, or the Territory Minister for a Territory, nominates to the Commonwealth Minister one or more offices, tribunals or bodies (each of which is an equivalent body), established by or under a law of the State or Territory, for the purpose of each performing specified functions or exercising specified powers of the NNTT or the Native Title Registrar, in specified circumstances, under specified equivalent body provisions (see subsection (9)).

To avoid doubt, the nomination may specify:

different functions or powers in relation to different equivalent bodies; or

different functions or powers in different circumstances.

The Commonwealth Minister may, by legislative instrument, determine that the one or more equivalent bodies are to perform the specified functions or exercise the specified powers in the specified circumstances, under the specified equivalent body provisions.

In order to ensure that there is a nationally consistent approach to the recognition and protection of native title, the Commonwealth Minister must not make the determination unless the Commonwealth Minister is satisfied that:

the one or more equivalent bodies will have available to them, through the bodies’ membership, appropriate expertise (including expertise in matters relating to Aboriginal peoples and Torres Strait Islanders) for performing their functions or exercising their powers under the determination; and

under the law of the State or Territory, the procedures of the one or more equivalent bodies in performing those functions or exercising those powers will be fair, just, informal, accessible and expeditious; and

the one or more equivalent bodies will have adequate resources to enable them to perform those functions or exercise those powers; and

members of the one or more equivalent bodies will enjoy security of tenure no less favourable than that enjoyed by members of the NNTT or the Native Title Registrar, as the case requires; and

the law of the State or Territory will enable and require the one or more equivalent bodies to perform those functions or exercise those powers if the Commonwealth Minister makes the determination; and

if any of the functions or powers that the one or more equivalent bodies will perform or exercise under the determination involves the maintenance of any register under this Act—the law of the State or Territory will require the functions to be performed or the powers to be exercised in a way that ensures that the register will be maintained in a nationally integrated and accessible manner; and

if any of the functions or powers that will be performed or exercised under the determination are those of the NNTT—the law of the State or Territory will require the member or at least one of the members of the equivalent body to be a member of the NNTT; and

any other requirement that the Commonwealth Minister considers relevant will be satisfied.

While the determination is in force, this Act, and Schedule 5 to the Native Title Amendment Act 1998, have effect, in relation to a function or power of the NNTT or Native Title Registrar specified in the determination, as if, in the specified circumstances:

the one or more equivalent bodies had the functions or powers, instead of the NNTT or the Registrar; and

if one of the powers specified in the determination is the power to make determinations under Subdivision P of Division 3 of Part 2 of this Act—for the purposes of sections 36A, 36B, 36C and 42 of this Act, the State Minister or the Territory Minister of the relevant State or Territory had the powers of the Commonwealth Minister under that section, instead of the Commonwealth Minister.

The Administrative Decisions (Judicial Review) Act 1977 will apply to decisions that an equivalent body or a State or Territory Minister may, because of this section, make under this Act to the same extent to which it applies to corresponding decisions of the NNTT, the Native Title Registrar or the Commonwealth Minister under this Act.

While the determination is in force, the functions and powers specified in the determination are vested in the one or more equivalent bodies, in the circumstances set out in the determination.

If, at any time:

the law of the State or Territory is amended; and

as a result, the Commonwealth Minister ceases to be satisfied as mentioned in subsection (4) in relation to any or all of the equivalent bodies;

advise the State Minister or the Territory Minister concerned in writing of the fact; and

if at the end of 90 days, or such longer period as the Commonwealth Minister allows, after doing so, the Commonwealth Minister is still not satisfied as mentioned in subsection (4)—by legislative instrument, revoke the determination.

The regulations may prescribe any modifications of this Act that are necessary or convenient to deal with transitional matters arising from the making or revocation of determinations under this section.

The equivalent body provisions are:

all of the provisions of this Act, except the following:

this section;

the provisions of Division 4 of Part 4, other than subsection 94H(1);

Part 5;

the provisions of Part 6, other than sections 139, 145, 169, 178 and 179; and

Schedule 5 to the Native Title Amendment Act 1998.