Williams v Wreck Bay Aboriginal Community Council

Constitutional law (Cth) – Powers of Commonwealth Parliament – Territories – Inconsistency between Commonwealth and Territory laws – Where Council empowered under Aboriginal Land Grant (Jervis Bay Territory) Act 1986 (Cth) ("Land Grant Act") to grant leases over certain land within Jervis Bay Territory ("JBT") – Where Land Grant Act does not affect application of other laws to extent other laws "capable of operating concurrently" with Land Grant Act – Where Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (ACT) applies in JBT as if JBT formed part of Australian Capital Territory – Where Residential Tenancies Act provides that all leases to which it applies include "standard residential tenancy terms" including term requiring lessor to maintain premises in reasonable state of repair – Whether, and to what extent, Residential Tenancies Act is law which is not capable of operating concurrently with Land Grant Act.

Words and phrases – "alter, impair or detract from", "anti-exclusivity provision", "capable of operating concurrently", "complete or exhaustive statement", "implicit negative proposition", "indirect inconsistency", "residential tenancy agreement", "standard residential tenancy terms", "statutory power".

Constitution – s 109.

Aboriginal Land Grant (Jervis Bay Territory) Act 1986 (Cth) – ss 6, 7, 12, 38, 40, 41, 42, 46.

Australian Capital Territory (Self –Government) Act 1988 (Cth), s 28.

Jervis Bay Territory Acceptance Act 1915 (Cth) – s 4A.

Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (ACT) – ss 8, 9, 10, 54, 128, Sch 1.