Haynes and Child Support Registrar (Child support)

This matter concerned an appeal to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (the Tribunal) concerning the refusal to grant an extension of time to object to a child support assessment. The applicant, Haynes, sought an extension of time to lodge an objection against a child support assessment issued by the Child Support Registrar.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the Registrar had erred in refusing to grant an extension of time for Haynes to lodge an objection. This required the Tribunal to consider whether there was a satisfactory explanation for the delay in lodging the objection and whether the objection had arguable merit, weighing these factors against the overall circumstances.

The Tribunal affirmed the Registrar's decision, finding that Haynes had not provided a satisfactory explanation for the significant delay in lodging the objection. While acknowledging that the objection might have some arguable merit, the Tribunal concluded that this factor alone was insufficient to outweigh the lack of a reasonable explanation for the lateness. Consequently, the Tribunal determined that the Registrar had correctly exercised their discretion in refusing the extension of time.