DQFY and Child Support Registrar (Child support second review)

This matter concerned a second review of a care percentage determination made by the Child Support Registrar, with the parties being DQFY and the Child Support Registrar. The dispute centred on the accuracy of the records of care maintained by each parent for the subject children over a defined period.

The Tribunal was required to determine the accuracy of the care records provided by DQFY and JCDG for the 12-month period from 1 November 2018 to 31 October 2019. This involved assessing inconsistencies between the parents' respective records and considering any evidence or submissions presented to demonstrate the inaccuracy of the other parent's record. The Tribunal also had to consider a more recent parenting arrangement agreed upon by the parties.

The Tribunal reasoned that while there was a paucity of evidence overall, DQFY's record of care was more likely to be accurate on the balance of probabilities. This conclusion was based on DQFY updating his records weekly compared to JCDG's fortnightly updates, corroborating statements from DQFY's mother and partner (albeit with limited weight), and crucially, DQFY's ability to substantiate specific dates of care with documentary evidence, such as a flight itinerary, which directly contradicted JCDG's record for that period. The Tribunal found that DQFY had 40% of the care for the period from 6 July 2018 to 2 June 2020, and 42% of the care from 3 June 2020 onwards, reflecting a new parenting arrangement.