Australian Executor Trustees > Native Title > For traditional owners > Native Title trusts

For more than 20 years, we have specialised in trustee services for Aboriginal communities and Native Title claim groups.

Native Title trusts generally involve mining. Mining companies enter into an agreement with a Native Title claim group to pay funds into nominated trusts in exchange for being able to access and mine Native Title land.

At AET, we recognise the importance of both maximising the potential for funds paid by the mining companies and engaging with the Traditional Owners in a genuine way.

This requires a trustee that is dedicated to understanding the culture of the Indigenous community and their relationship to the land. The role demands a sincere commitment to learning about the ambitions, aspirations and needs of each Indigenous community.

When Traditional Owners choose us to act as trustee, we commit to:

being a regular presence in the local community to foster engagement
building the Traditional Owners’ capacity for self‑sustainability and self‑empowerment
ensuring assets are held securely and invested wisely
making distributions swiftly, recognising the community’s immediate and long-term needs
distributing funds to charitable causes to maximise the positive social impact
assisting in other areas, including budgeting, taxation, governance and policy creation.