PHHZ and Child Support Registrar (Child support second review)

The applicant sought a review of a decision by the Child Support Registrar, which had been affirmed by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, concerning the applicant's percentage of care for a child, C. The Registrar's decision established the applicant's care percentage at 86% and the other party's at 14% from 27 December 2015. The dispute centred on the commencement date of the relevant two-year care period for calculating these percentages.

The primary legal issue before the court was to determine the appropriate commencement date for the two-year care period to assess the child's care percentage under section 54A of the Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989. This involved considering when the "actual care" of the child commenced for the purposes of the calculation, particularly in light of existing Federal Circuit Court orders regarding the child's time with each parent during school holidays.

The court reasoned that the care percentage is generally determined by the number of nights a child spends in the care of each person, based on actual care, unless specific exceptions apply. The court found that the relevant care period should commence from the date when the actual care of the child changed, which was 27 December 2015, the start of the school holidays when the other party commenced care. This date was deemed appropriate as it aligned with the Federal Circuit Court orders and accommodated the alternating Christmas arrangements for the child, ensuring the two-year period encompassed two such arrangements. The court noted that the care arrangements generally followed the Federal Circuit Court orders, with a specific interpretation required regarding references to New South Wales school terms and holidays.