Introduction: This paper will examine the legal frameworks used by Australia to combat overfishing in the Southern Ocean, particularly the Patagonian toothfish fishery around Heard Island and the McDonald Islands, which could collapse within a few years due to illegal fishing. This area is within Australia's exclusive economic zone, but is more than 4,000 kilometers from the nearest port, putting it well beyond the reach of regulators and law enforcement. The area is also in the Southern Ocean, which falls under international legal frameworks, particularly the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Heard and McDonald Islands is a unique ecosystem, recognized as being relatively untouched by human development. However, the volume of illegal toothfish fishing in this area is estimated to be equal to the volume of legal toothfish fishing. The illegal catch market is estimated at $1 billion. The scale of this illegal fishing industry is believed to be largely due to a lack of regulation or even collusion by countries lacking legal frameworks and competent governance. Additionally, illegal fishing vessels use a complex legal framework to avoid detection and prosecution, including the use of front companies and registration in countries that are not signatories to international agreements. Other obstacles to protecting the biodiversity of the Heard and McDonald Islands toothfish fisheries include the apparent lack of urgency on the part of Australia towards this effort. For example, there is a lack of law enforcement support to enforce national and international legal frameworks, with only one patrol vessel in the middle of paper...... for signatory May 5, 1980, 19 ILM 841 (entered into force on 7 April 1982). Others - Australian Fisheries Management Authority, Annual Status Report: Heard Island and McDonald Islands Fishery, 21 May 2010. - Australian Fisheries Management Authority, Ecosystem-based Fishery Management, 21 May 2010 - Australian Fisheries Management Authority, Illegal Foreign Fishing, April 27, 2010.- Australian Fisheries Management Authority, Australian Fisheries National Compliance Strategy, April 27, 2010- Australian Fisheries Management Authority 'Managing Bycatch and Discarding' May 21, 2010- Australian Fisheries Management Authority, Strategic Assessment , May 21, 2010 - Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Australia's Oceans Policy, May 21, 2010. - Madrid Protocol, Australian Antarctic Division, Department of the Environment, November 1 2009.