Consultation over Native Title and Aboriginal cultural heritage protection will be reviewed in Western Australia, two years after an embarrassing backflip on a failed attempt to modernise the system.

The targeted four-month process would review key consultation processes involving Native Title and cultural heritage protection, between the state, mining industry and Traditional Owners.

The National Native Title Tribunal (NNTT), which would assist the government review, welcomed the move.

"We look forward to supporting the WA government undertake focused and meaningful consultations with Traditional Owners and industry stakeholders," NNTT president Kevin Smith said.

"It can only help to better understand how consultation processes can be improved upon to support Native Title parties, to protect, preserve and manage their cultural heritage."

Management of Aboriginal cultural heritage in the mining-focused state has been under increasing pressure since the state government's failed reform of outdated legislation two years ago, after a lack of proper consultation led to confusion among stakeholders and eventually a high-profile backflip from Labor.

The proposed reform by the McGowan government followed the devastating destruction of the 46,000-year-old sacred Juukan Gorge site in 2020 by Rio Tinto, and a subsequent Senate inquiry report A Way Forward.

It's recommendations included the establishment of a national heritage protection framework co-designed with Aboriginal people, a review of the Native Title Act 1993 to address inequalities in the negotiating position of Indigenous people, and alignment with the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

Human rights lawyer and Indigenous expert Dr Hannah McGlade said WA's current system was still the same, five years on from Juukan Gorge, while the law still entrenched systemic racial discrimination against Traditional Owners.

"Our cultural heritage sites are considered to be a breach of racial discrimination, and we have not addressed this at a state and Federal level," Dr McGlade said.

"The National Native Title Council should hold a roundtable with leaders and experts to prioritise the necessity for binding legal reforms.

"It's been five years since Juukan Gorge, and still no change."

The review of mining and exploration processes would not consider legislative amendments but hopefully improve outcomes for both Traditional Owners and industry, the government said.

The NNTT would support authorities evaluate ways to make current legislation more efficient, effective, and equitable.

"The National Native Title Tribunal looks forward to supporting the WA government undertake focused and meaningful consultations with Traditional Owners and industry stakeholders, to better understand how consultation processes can be improved upon to support Native Title parties to protect, preserve and manage their cultural heritage," Mr Smith said.

The quality of consultation, and how processes delivered social, economic, and community benefits, in line with Closing the Gap commitments, would also be examined, with on-Country meetings, targeted roundtables and workshops on the agenda during the four-month process, with a final report expected by December.

WA Premier Roger Cook said Native Title was a major feature of the social, cultural and economic landscape across the state, with more than 90 per cent of WA subject to a Native Title outcome.

"This targeted review is a timely and important opportunity to strengthen the way we manage Aboriginal cultural heritage in WA and find better ways to navigate statutory consultation processes in the mining and exploration sector, under the current legislative frameworks," he said.

Aboriginal Affairs minister Don Punch said the government acknowledged the unique nature of Aboriginal cultural heritage and the need to protect, preserve and manage that heritage.

"Native Title bodies and regional corporations play a critical role in providing that protection," he said.

"This review demonstrates our commitment to improving the effectiveness and workability of WA's Native Title and Aboriginal cultural heritage settings under the current legislation frameworks.

"Working alongside the National Native Title Tribunal will ensure consultations are targeted and focused on meaningful outcomes for all stakeholders."

For further information, including the review's terms of reference, click here.