Aboriginal Customary Law

The Law Council supports recognition and respect for Aboriginal customary laws, consistent with International human rights standards.

The Law Council has made the following submissions in relation to issues affecting the recognition of Aboriginal customary law:

•  Aboriginal Customary Law - May 2006
  Submission to the Law Reform Commission of Western Australia
•  Calls to Scrap Customary Law Misconceived - May 2006
  Law Council Media Release
•  Aboriginal Customary Issues Important Factor in Sentencing Process - June 2006
  Law Council Media Release
•  Recognition of Cultural Factors in Sentencing - July 2006
  Submission to the Council of Australian Governments (COAG)
•  Law Council Urges COAG to Re-think Customary Law Changes - July 2006
  Law Council Media Release
•  Crimes Amendment (Bail and Sentencing) Bill 2006 - September 2006
  Submission to the Senate Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs
•  Law Council’s Criticism of Sentencing Laws Backed by Scathing Senate Report - October 2006
  Law Council Media Release
•  Black Day for Indigenous Australians - November 2006
  Law Council Media Release
•  Review of Customary Law Amendments to Bail and Sentencing Legislation - November 2008
  Submission to the Attorney-General’s Department

Useful Links

Justice Stephen Southwood, Equality of the Law and the Sentencing of Aboriginal Offenders under the Sentencing Act (NT), speech to the Rule of Law: The Challenges of a Changing World Conference, 31 August-1 September 2007

Tom Calma AO, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, Customary Law in Sentencing and Changes to Tenure Arrangements on Aboriginal Land , Address to the 35th Australian Legal Convention, Sydney, 24 March 2007

Australian Law Reform Commission, ALRC Report 31 - The recognition of Aboriginal customary laws, 1986

Law Reform Commission of Western Australia, LRCWA Project No. 94 - Aboriginal Customary Laws, September 2006