This paper demonstrates, through a detailed comparison with Canada and New Zealand, that the Australian government’s approach to Indigenous customary and commercial fishing rights stands outside developments in other Commonwealth countries. It focuses on commercial fishing in particular as an opportunity for Indigenous people to more fully realise their economic rights.

The paper undertakes a comparative overview of the law as it pertains to Indigenous rights in freshwater in four countries: the United States, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia. It is organised around four themes of particular concern to contemporary Indigenous Australians: ownership of water, water rights, commercial rights, and management rights. To date, the law, especially in Australia, has been relatively silent as to the water rights of Indigenous people.