Burch and Burch (Child support)

This matter concerned an appeal by the father against a departure determination made by the Child Support Registrar. The dispute centred on whether the costs of the children's private school education should be considered in the child support assessment, and if so, to what extent. The appeal was heard by R Anderson M in the [Court Name].

The primary legal issue before the court was whether the Registrar had erred in making the departure determination. Specifically, the court had to consider whether the costs of the children's education at a private school were a manner expected by both parents, and whether these costs significantly affected the costs of maintaining the children. Furthermore, the court was required to assess whether the financial resources of both parents had been adequately considered in the original determination.

R Anderson M reasoned that the Registrar's decision to depart from the usual assessment formula was not justified. The court found that while the children attended private school, there was insufficient evidence to establish that this was a manner expected by *both* parents. The court emphasised that for a departure determination to be made on this ground, there must be a clear and shared expectation between the parents regarding the specific educational choices and their associated costs. The court also noted that the financial resources of both parents were not sufficiently taken into account when considering the impact of these educational expenses.

Consequently, R Anderson M set aside the original departure determination and substituted it with a new decision that did not include the private school education costs in the child support assessment.