Michelmore and Adkins (Child support)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered the matter of *Michelmore and Adkins (Child Support)*. The dispute concerned the particulars of an administrative assessment of child support, specifically relating to the respondent's estimated income. The applicant sought to have the decision under review set aside and substituted.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the respondent's estimated income, as used in the child support assessment, accurately reflected their financial circumstances, particularly in light of employer payments received after the estimate was made. The central issue was whether the estimate of income was reasonable and whether subsequent payments should have been incorporated into the assessment.

Member M King reasoned that the respondent's employer had made final payments after the initial estimate of income was provided. The Tribunal found that these payments were relevant to the respondent's actual income for the period in question and should have been included in the calculation of the child support assessment. Applying the principles of accurate income assessment under the *Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988*, the Tribunal concluded that the original estimate was not sufficiently reflective of the respondent's true income. Consequently, the Tribunal set aside the original decision and substituted it with a revised assessment that incorporated the later-received employer payments.