On 31 May 1999 two matters came before the Full Federal Court of Australia, constituted by Justices Whitlam, Wilcox and Merkel. The two cases heard together were different in nature and origin, but their common feature was a claim of genocide. The primary issue was whether the international crime of genocide forms part of the law of Australia. The majority view was that, before an international crime could be prosecuted in an Australian court, specific domestic legislation needed to be enacted. The dissenting opinion was that genocide had become an offence at common law and could be prosecuted. In this case note I will analyse the opinions both in the terms of their impact on the relationship between international law and domestic law in Australia, and in light of recent trends in Australia and other common law countries.