Philby and Philby (Child support)

The case of *Philby and Philby* concerned a dispute regarding a child support administrative assessment. The applicant, Philby, sought to have the decision under review set aside and substituted, while the respondent, also Philby, sought to have the decision under review affirmed. The matter came before Judicial Registrar Bakas.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether the Registrar should have accepted the estimate of income provided by the applicant for the purposes of the child support administrative assessment. This involved determining the appropriate application of the relevant provisions of the *Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988* (Cth) concerning the lodgement and acceptance of income estimates.

The court considered the applicant's failure to lodge an estimate of income within the prescribed timeframe. The Registrar reasoned that the absence of a timely and compliant estimate meant that the Child Support Registrar was entitled to proceed with an assessment based on available information, or to make an estimate themselves. The court affirmed the principle that parties have a responsibility to comply with procedural requirements for lodging income estimates to influence administrative assessments.

The decision under review was affirmed, meaning the original administrative assessment stood.