What was the outcome of Mabo v. Queensland in 1992?

The 1992 High Court of Australia decision in Mabo v. Queensland (No. 2) was a landmark victory for Torres Strait Islander peoples and Aboriginal peoples.

The court ruled that the doctrine of terra nullius—the legal fiction that Australia was "land of no one" at the time of European colonization—was null and void. By rejecting this doctrine, the court formally recognized that Indigenous peoples held rights to their traditional lands prior to colonization.1

This decision established the concept of native title, acknowledging the rights of Eddie Koiki Mabo and his fellow plaintiffs to their ancestral lands on Mer (Murray Island). The ruling fundamentally changed Australian law by enabling Indigenous communities to pursue legal claims for land ownership and compensation. Following the judgment, the Australian government passed the Native Title Act in 1993 to codify these rights into legislation.1