Editor's Summary: Australia is the world's driest continent. Its watersheds collect very little water, and except for Antarctica, it has the lowest level of rainfall of any continent. Land use choices, in addition to the extraction of surface water and groundwater for domestic, industrial, and agricultural purposes, have further exacerbated the nation's water woes. Australia's experience in water law and policy could therefore prove quite instructive as we face the need to better manage our global water resources. In this Article, Prof. Douglas Fisher provides an overview of the development of water law in Australia over the last 215 years from a system that was originally based on principles of common law to one that recognizes and seeks to respond to the international call for sustainability.