Rogerson and Child Support Registrar (Child support)

The applicant, Rogerson, sought judicial review of a decision made by the Child Support Registrar concerning the percentage of care for a child. The dispute centred on whether there had been a change to the likely pattern of care, which led to the revocation of existing percentage of care determinations and the making of new ones. The matter came before M Douglas M.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether the Registrar had erred in revoking the existing percentage of care determinations and making new ones, and if so, what the correct date of effect for any revised determination should be. This involved an examination of the evidence presented regarding the actual and likely future patterns of care for the child.

The court considered the provisions of the *Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988* (Cth) and relevant case law concerning changes to the pattern of care. The court found that the Registrar had not properly applied the legislative criteria for revoking existing determinations and making new ones, particularly in relation to the evidence of the likely future pattern of care. Consequently, the court determined that the decision under review was flawed.

The court set aside the decision of the Child Support Registrar and substituted its own determination. The new determination reflected the court's findings on the percentage of care and specified the date from which it was to take effect.