Hanbury and Horler (Child support)

This matter concerned an appeal to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal concerning a child support assessment. The applicant, Hanbury, sought to have the respondent, Horler's, estimated income for child support purposes refused. The decision under review was made by the Registrar of the Child Support Registrar.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the Registrar had erred in estimating the respondent's income. Specifically, the Tribunal was required to determine if the estimate was reasonable and if there was sufficient evidence to support the Registrar's conclusion that the respondent had failed to provide sufficient information regarding their income.

The Tribunal considered the provisions of the *Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988* (Cth) and relevant case law concerning the estimation of income in child support matters. The Tribunal found that the Registrar had not been provided with sufficient information by the respondent to make a precise assessment of their income. Consequently, the Registrar was justified in making an estimate. However, the Tribunal reviewed the basis of that estimate and determined that it was not the most reasonable estimate available given the information presented. The Tribunal set aside the decision under review and substituted its own decision, making a revised estimate of the respondent's income.