Naylor and Child Support Registrar (Child support)

This matter concerned an appeal by Naylor against a decision of the Child Support Registrar concerning the assessment of child support. The dispute centred on whether certain payments made by Naylor to the child's mother constituted child support or were otherwise deductible from his child support assessment. The case was heard by S De Bono SM in the Magistrates Court of Victoria.

The primary legal issue before the Court was whether the payments made by Naylor were voluntary or obligatory, and consequently, whether they could be recognised as child support payments for the purposes of the assessment under the *Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988* (Cth) and the *Child Support (Assessment) Act 1988* (Cth). Specifically, the Court had to determine if these payments were made pursuant to a legal obligation or were merely gratuitous contributions.

The Court reasoned that for payments to be recognised as child support, they must be made pursuant to a legal obligation, such as a court order or a binding agreement. In this instance, the Court found that the payments made by Naylor were voluntary and not made under any legal compulsion. Therefore, they could not be offset against his assessed child support liability. The principle applied was that voluntary payments do not discharge a statutory child support obligation.

The appeal was dismissed, and the Child Support Registrar's assessment was upheld.