Section 109
Inconsistency of laws
When a law of a State is inconsistent with a law of the Commonwealth, the latter shall prevail, and the former shall, to the extent of the inconsistency, be invalid.
Related Cases
1920Engineers' CaseRejected the doctrine of implied intergovernmental immunities and reserved State powers; established that Commonwealth powers should be interpreted according to their natural meaning1942First Uniform Tax CaseUpheld the Commonwealth's wartime scheme to impose uniform income taxation, effectively excluding the States from the income tax field1992Mabo (No 2)Recognised native title in Australian common law, rejecting the doctrine of terra nullius; has constitutional significance regarding the races power and the relationship between Commonwealth and State laws on Indigenous matters