Moriarty and Smyrniotis (Child support)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered the matter of child support payments between Moriarty and Smyrniotis. The dispute concerned whether certain payments made by Smyrniotis for the children's sporting activities, school necessities, and other costs constituted registered child support liabilities, particularly in circumstances where Smyrniotis had a zero annual child support liability.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the payments made by Smyrniotis for the children's expenses qualified as registered child support liabilities under the relevant legislation. Specifically, the AAT had to assess whether these payments were made pursuant to a child support agreement or if they were voluntary contributions that did not create a registerable maintenance liability, especially given the absence of an assessed annual liability.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision under review, finding that a zero annual liability does not, in itself, create a registerable maintenance liability. It was determined that for payments to be considered registered child support liabilities, there must be an existing liability at the time of payment, or a mutual agreement between the parties that such payments would be treated as child support. In this instance, the Tribunal found that at the time some payments were made, there was no liability, and for others, there was no mutual agreement to register them as such.