Forst and Forst (Child support)

This matter concerned an appeal by the father, Mr Forst, against a child support assessment made by the Child Support Registrar. The dispute centred on the father's income, specifically whether certain payments received by him should be included in his assessable income for child support purposes. The appeal was heard by Magistrate P Jensen in the Magistrates Court of Western Australia.

The primary legal issue before the Court was whether payments received by the father from his employer, described as "redundancy payments" or "severance payments," constituted "income" for the purposes of the *Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989* (Cth). The father contended that these payments were capital in nature and therefore not assessable income, while the Child Support Registrar argued they were periodic payments or payments in the nature of income.

Magistrate Jensen considered the nature of the payments and the relevant provisions of the *Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989* (Cth). The Court applied the principle that the characterisation of a payment depends on its source and the circumstances in which it is paid. In this instance, the payments were made to the father in lieu of notice of termination and were calculated based on his length of service and salary. The Court found that these payments were not a return of capital but rather a substitute for wages that would have been earned had the employment continued. Therefore, they were properly characterised as income for child support assessment purposes.

The appeal was dismissed, and the child support assessment made by the Child Support Registrar was affirmed.