Langley and Langley (Child support)

The matter of *Langley and Langley (Child support)* concerned an appeal to the Full Court of the Family Court of Australia regarding an application for child support. The primary dispute involved the assessment of child support payable by the respondent father to the appellant mother for their two children.

The central legal issue before the Full Court was whether the Registrar of the Child Support Agency had erred in law by failing to consider, or adequately consider, the impact of the respondent's significant non-income producing assets on his capacity to pay child support. Specifically, the court was asked to determine if the Registrar's assessment, which relied solely on the respondent's declared taxable income, was appropriate given the substantial assets held by the respondent.

The Full Court found that the Registrar had indeed erred in law. Applying the principles established in *Child Support Registrar v. D’Arcy* [2007] FamCA 1400, the Court held that a parent's capacity to pay child support is not solely determined by their taxable income but must also take into account their ability to service payments from their assets. The Court reasoned that the Registrar's failure to consider the respondent's substantial non-income producing assets meant that the child support assessment did not accurately reflect his true capacity to pay.

Consequently, the Full Court set aside the Registrar's decision and remitted the matter back to the Child Support Agency for redetermination in accordance with the Court's reasons.