Piacitelli and Piacitelli (Child support)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered the matter of *Piacitelli and Piacitelli (Child support)*. The dispute concerned the correct calculation of child support payable by the father, Mr. Piacitelli, to the mother, Ms. Piacitelli. Specifically, the review related to the adjusted taxable income used in the administrative assessment of child support.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the adjusted taxable income applied in the child support assessment was correct, particularly in light of an updated payslip that rendered the previously used "year to date" figure inaccurate. The core legal issue was how to treat income information that had become outdated during the assessment period.

Member S Letch of the AAT reasoned that the "year to date" figure on a payslip, when no longer current, did not accurately reflect the individual's income for the relevant assessment period. The Tribunal applied the principle that child support assessments should be based on the most accurate and up-to-date information available. Consequently, the Tribunal found that the previous assessment was based on an incorrect adjusted taxable income.

The Tribunal set aside the original decision and substituted its own decision, which involved recalculating the child support payable based on the corrected adjusted taxable income.