Smadden and Amable (Child support)

In the matter of *Smadden and Amable*, Deputy President K Synon of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered a dispute concerning child support. The applicant sought to have child support payments reassessed, arguing that the respondent had failed to provide sufficient information regarding his income. The core of the dispute revolved around the respondent's alleged failure to disclose his full financial circumstances, which the applicant contended prevented a proper assessment of child support obligations.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the respondent had failed to provide sufficient information regarding his income for the purposes of child support assessment under the *Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988* (Cth). Specifically, the Tribunal had to consider the extent of the respondent's disclosure obligations and whether the information provided by him met the statutory requirements for a child support assessment.

Deputy President Synon reasoned that the respondent had not provided sufficient information to enable a proper assessment of child support. The Tribunal applied the principles of the *Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988* (Cth), which place an onus on liable parents to provide accurate and complete information regarding their income. The Deputy President found that the respondent's submissions were vague and lacked the necessary detail to establish his true income. Consequently, the Tribunal was unable to proceed with a reassessment based on the information provided.

The Tribunal determined that it could not make a reassessment of child support in the absence of sufficient information from the respondent. The application for reassessment was therefore dismissed.