Desi and Desi (Child support)

The matter of *Desi and Desi (Child support)* concerned a dispute regarding the registration of a child support liability for collection by the department. The applicant, Desi, sought to challenge the determination that there were unpaid amounts of child support within the relevant three-month arrears period.

The central legal issue before the court was whether the respondent's calculation of unpaid child support was correct, specifically considering certain payments made by the respondent that were argued to be in lieu of child support. The court was required to determine if these payments should have been credited against the child support liability, thereby reducing or eliminating any arrears.

The court affirmed the decision under review, finding that the unpaid amount had been correctly determined. The reasoning applied was that the payments in question were not made in accordance with the child support assessment and therefore could not be considered as satisfying the child support liability. Consequently, the arrears were correctly calculated by the department.