A Lease Not Enough: Court Ruling on Crown Property Could Clear Path for 30,000 Aboriginal Land Claims

Findings around a technicality in the NSW Aboriginal Land Rights Act could expediate around 30,000 land rights applications.

An Aboriginal flag is seen through the crowd at the "Stop Black Deaths In Custody" march in Perth, Australia on Oct. 7, 2023. Matt Jelonek/Getty Images

The chair of the New South Wales Aboriginal Land Council (NSWALC) says a decision to grant Aboriginal land rights over a disused club could pave the way for expediting around 30,000 land claims across the state.

The Paddington Bowling Club sits on Crown land and hasn’t been operational since 2015, but the venue’s leasee, Quarry Street Pty Ltd, has continued to pay $52,000 a year in rent.