The Constitution of Australia

The Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act is the supreme law of Australia. Original enacted in 1900, the document created the union of the six self-governing British colonies in Australia under a single federal government, under a Constitutional Monarchy with a Westminster Parliament.

The Australia Act 1986 formally separated Australia from all legal ties to the United Kingdom, effectively making Australia an independent nation state. No longer would London be able to legislate, govern, or administer justice.

These documents make up the legal foundation for the country we know as Australia. They were heavily influence by the Westminster model of parliamentary democracy, and the Anglo-Saxon political traditions like the Magna Carta, and the Bill of Rights 1687.