Jeffress and Verey (Child support)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered an application by Jeffress (the applicant) concerning a child support administrative assessment. The dispute centred on the respondent's (Verey's) estimated income, which formed the basis of the child support assessment. The applicant sought to have this estimate refused, arguing it was not a reasonable basis for the assessment.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the Child Support Registrar had erred in accepting Verey's estimated income for the purposes of the child support assessment, and consequently, whether the Tribunal should set aside the Registrar's decision and substitute its own. This involved determining if the estimate was a reasonable basis for the assessment under the relevant provisions of the *Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988*.

The Tribunal affirmed the Registrar's decision, finding that the estimate of Verey's income was reasonable and properly accepted. The Tribunal reasoned that the Registrar was entitled to make an estimate of income where the individual had failed to provide sufficient information to determine their actual income. The Tribunal applied the principles that the Registrar has a broad discretion to estimate income when necessary, and that such an estimate should not be set aside unless it is demonstrably unreasonable or based on incorrect information. The Tribunal was satisfied that the estimate provided was a reasonable basis for the child support assessment.