Rawding and Hamond (Child support)

The case of *Rawding and Hamond* concerned an application for a departure determination under the *Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988* (Cth). The applicant sought to depart from the assessed child support amount, alleging that the existing assessment was unfair. The matter came before Judicial Officer Bakas M.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether any of the grounds for departure, as stipulated in section 117 of the *Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988*, were established. The applicant bore the onus of proving that a departure from the assessment was justified on one or more of these grounds.

Judicial Officer Bakas M found that the applicant had failed to establish any of the grounds for departure. The court applied the principles of statutory interpretation to the relevant provisions of the Act, concluding that the evidence presented did not meet the threshold required to justify a departure from the child support assessment. Consequently, the decision under review, which affirmed the original assessment, was affirmed.