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Compensatory justice and accountability for First Nations peoples: the Timber Creek case

Ellie Norris (University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand)
Shawgat Kutubi (Charles Darwin University–Darwin Waterfront, Darwin, Australia) (Central Queensland University, Sydney, Australia)
Glenn Finau (University of Tasmania, Hobart, Australia)

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal

ISSN: 0951-3574

Article publication date: 11 December 2024

44

Abstract

Purpose

This paper examines the state’s accountability to its citizens, in particular the First Peoples of settler colonial nations such as Australia, and how these responsibilities may be enacted via a process of compensatory justice in Native Title claims. We focus on the landmark Timber Creek ruling and the impacts of racialized preconceptions on the accountability outcomes of the case.

Design/methodology/approach

This study draws on critical race theory to reveal embedded racialised perspectives that perpetuate exclusion and discriminatory outcomes. Court documents including hearing transcripts, case judgements, witness statements, appellant and respondent submissions, expert reports and responses from First Nations leaders, form the basis of our analysis.

Findings

The case highlights how the compensation awarded to Native Title holders was based on racialised assumptions that prioritised neoliberal values, commercial activities and reaching a “socially acceptable” judgement over valuing Aboriginal uses of land. A critical analysis of court documents reveals the pervasiveness of presumed “objectivity” in the use of accounting tools to calculate economic value and the accountability implications of a process based on litigation, not negotiation. These findings reveal the hiding places offered by calculative practices that equate neoliberal priorities with accountability and reaffirm the importance of alternative accountings to resist inequitable distributive outcomes.

Originality/value

Novel insights, drawing on First Nations peoples’ connections to land and their perspectives on accountability and justice, are offered in this study. Our analysis of Native Title holders’ submissions to the courts alongside historical and anthropological sources leads to the conclusion that compensation decisions regarding Native Title land must be approached from the perspective of Aboriginal landowners if accountable outcomes are to be achieved.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

The authors respectfully acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the lands on which this research was conducted. We further wish to express our gratitude to Prof. Gloria Agyemang and the two anonymous reviewers whose comments helped us to significantly improve this manuscript. Earlier versions of this paper were also presented to the Australasian Centre for Social and Environmental Accounting Research (A-CSEAR) conference in December 2023 and the Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand (AFAANZ) conference in June 2024. We extend our thanks to conference attendees for their comments and suggestions.

Funding: This project was funded by the Charles Darwin University CSFP Scheme.

Citation

Norris, E., Kutubi, S. and Finau, G. (2024), "Compensatory justice and accountability for First Nations peoples: the Timber Creek case", Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/AAAJ-11-2023-6726

Publisher

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Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2024, Emerald Publishing Limited

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