Paglia & Wayson (No 2)

FEDERAL CIRCUIT AND FAMILY COURT OF AUSTRALIA

(DIVISION 2)

Paglia & Wayson (No 2) [2024] FedCFamC2F 1514   

File number(s):

MLC 7880 of 2023

Judgment of:

JUDGE O'SHANNESSY

Date of judgment:

18 October 2024

Catchwords:

 FAMILY LAW – Child Support – Child Support Registrar unable to retrospectively consider assessment past 18 months ago – whether leave should be given to the Registrar to consider further than 18 months- balance of prejudice – explanation for delay – prima facie case – leave granted  

Legislation:

Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989 (Cth) ss 98S, 111 and 112

Cases cited:

Child Support Registrar & Holub [2017] FCCA 2400

Peck & Peck [2019] FCCA 558

Division:

Division 2 Family Law

Number of paragraphs:

31

Date of hearing:

18 October 2024

Place:

Melbourne

Counsel for the Applicant:

Mr Mutton

Solicitor for the Applicant:

Victoria Legal Aid

Counsel for the Respondent:

Mr Cash

Solicitor for the Respondent:

Bramham Lawyers

ORDERS

MLC 7880 of 2023

FEDERAL CIRCUIT AND FAMILY COURT OF AUSTRALIA (DIVISION 2)

BETWEEN:

MR PAGLIA

Applicant

AND:

MS WAYSON

Respondent

ORDER MADE BY:	JUDGE O'SHANNESSY
DATE OF ORDER:	18 OCTOBER 2024

THE COURT ORDERS THAT:

1.Pursuant to section 112 of the Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989 (Cth) (‘the Act’) leave be and is granted for the Child Support Registrar to make a determination under section 98S of the Act for the child support assessment in relation to the child, X born in 2008, for the period of 1 September 2020 to 10 October 2021 provided that Mr Paglia makes such application to the Registrar within 14 days of this day.

Note:   The form of the order is subject to the entry in the Court’s records.

Note: This copy of the Court’s Reasons for judgment may be subject to review to remedy minor typographical or grammatical errors (r 10.14(b) Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 (Cth)), or to record a variation to the order pursuant to r 10.13 Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021 (Cth).

Part XIVB of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) makes it an offence, except in very limited circumstances, to publish an account of proceedings that identify persons, associated persons, or witnesses involved in family law proceedings.

IT IS NOTED that publication of this judgment by this Court under a pseudonym has been approved pursuant to subsection 114Q(2) of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth).

EX TEMPORE REASONS FOR JUDGMENT

JUDGE O’SHANNESSY

1. These are the settled reasons of a judgment delivered ex tempore.  These reasons were delivered orally.  These settled reasons have been corrected from the transcript where appropriate to correct grammatical errors, to add citations, passages of authorities and evidence, findings omitted by pressure of time, and to attempt to make the orally delivered reasons easier to read.  The substance is unchanged.

   Background

2. In the matter of Paglia & Wayson, the matter comes before me in regard to an application made by the applicant father, Mr Paglia (‘the Father’), who has been…