Kerrigan and Janes (No. 2)

In *Kerrigan and Janes (No. 2)*, the Federal Circuit Court of Australia considered an application for a further departure from an administrative assessment of child support. The dispute concerned the father's obligation to contribute to the child's counselling expenses.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether to grant a further departure from the child support assessment under section 116 of the *Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989* (Cth) to account for the child's counselling expenses. This required the court to determine if the circumstances warranted such a departure.

Macmillan J found that the child's attendance upon Ms Q for counselling constituted a special circumstance that justified a further departure from the administrative assessment. The court reasoned that the father should contribute to these out-of-pocket expenses, as they were necessary for the child's well-being. Consequently, the court ordered a further departure from the administrative assessment for the period ending 31 December 2018, and directed the father to pay the out-of-pocket expenses for the child's counselling in addition to the child support already payable.