Fountaine and Fountaine (Child support)

The matter of *Fountaine and Fountaine* concerned an appeal to the Child Support Registrar regarding a child support assessment. The dispute centred on the percentage of care arrangements for the child, specifically whether there had been a change to the likely pattern of care, which included the child living partly with a third party. The decision under review was affirmed.

The primary legal issue before the court was to determine whether the existing percentage of care arrangements accurately reflected the child's living arrangements, particularly in light of the child spending time with a third party. This required an assessment of whether the circumstances had changed sufficiently to warrant a variation in the established care percentages for the purposes of child support.

The court considered the evidence presented regarding the child's living arrangements and the involvement of the third party. It applied the principles governing the assessment of care percentages under the relevant child support legislation, which requires a consideration of the likely pattern of care over the assessment period. The court found that the evidence did not establish a significant change to the likely pattern of care that would justify altering the existing assessment.