Crowley and Utton (Child support)

The Deputy President Walsh of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered the dispute between Crowley and Utton concerning the percentage of care for a child. The core of the disagreement revolved around the appropriate care period to be used for calculating child support, particularly given differing care arrangements in alternating years.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the previous decision, which had set aside and substituted a new decision, had correctly identified and applied the relevant care period. Specifically, the issue was how to assess the percentage of care when the child spent alternating years with each parent, and whether the existing care arrangements were in accordance with court orders.

Deputy President Walsh reasoned that the Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988 requires the assessment of child support based on the percentage of care provided to a child. In circumstances where care arrangements vary between years, the Tribunal must consider the most appropriate period to reflect the ongoing care arrangements. The Deputy President found that the previous decision had erred in its assessment of the care period, leading to an incorrect calculation of child support. The Tribunal set aside the previous decision and substituted its own, which correctly identified the appropriate care period for the child support assessment.