Parham and Buckby (Child support)

This matter concerned an appeal to the Federal Circuit Court of Australia regarding a child support assessment. The applicants, Parham and Buckby, sought to challenge a decision made by the Child Support Registrar concerning the percentage of care attributed to each party for the purposes of calculating child support liability.

The central legal issue before the Court was whether the Registrar had erred in determining the likely pattern of care for the subject child from the commencement of the administrative assessment. Specifically, the Court was required to consider the evidence presented regarding the actual care arrangements and whether these arrangements reflected the Registrar's determination of the percentage of care.

Her Honour Magistrate Webb affirmed the decision of the Child Support Registrar. The Court found that the Registrar had correctly applied the relevant provisions of the *Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988* (Cth) and the *Child Support Assessment Act 1989* (Cth) in assessing the likely pattern of care. The evidence did not establish that the Registrar's determination was unreasonable or that the actual care arrangements, when considered from the commencement of the assessment period, warranted a different percentage of care.