Raines and Owston (Child support)

The matter of *Raines and Owston* concerned a dispute regarding particulars of an administrative assessment of child support. The applicant, Raines, sought to challenge the estimate of the respondent's, Owston's, income that had been accepted by the Child Support Registrar. The decision was made by Member Y Webb of the relevant tribunal.

The primary legal issue before the tribunal was whether the Child Support Registrar had erred in accepting the estimate of Owston's income for the purposes of the child support assessment. Specifically, the tribunal had to determine if the estimate should have been refused on the grounds that it was not a reasonable or appropriate basis for the assessment.

Member Webb reasoned that the Registrar’s decision to accept the estimate of income was not adequately supported by the evidence before them. The tribunal found that the Registrar had not properly considered all relevant factors when making this determination. Consequently, the tribunal set aside the decision under review and remitted the matter back to the Child Support Registrar for reconsideration.