Cases: Costs

Costs, Prevailing Party: $2.15 Million Fee Order Affirmed, But $205,480.27 In Not Court-Ordered Electronic Document Hosting Charges, Denied, Were Ordered For Consideration On Remand

Cases: Costs, Cases: Prevailing Party

Decision Looks Like It Recognizes That The Modern Costs Of ESI Discovery Expenses May Be Compensable In The Lower Court’s Discretion.             In Russo v. Andrews, Case No. A155999 et al. (1st Dist., Div. 5 Sept. 28, 2022) (unpublished), defendants beat plaintiff in a contentious LLC operating agreement dispute, with defendants awarded damages and equitable […]

Construction, Costs: Litigant Prevailing On Payment Bond Improperly Denied Costs And Fees Under Routine Costs Statute And Civil Code Section 9564(c)

Cases: Construction, Cases: Costs

It Did Not Matter That Someone Else Paid Or Reimbursed Costs And Fees—Entitlement Was There.             In Cell-Crete Corp. v. Federal Ins. Co., Case No. E075264 (4th Dist., Div. 2 Sept. 8, 2022) (published), defendant prevailed in a case involving a payment bond, which raised whether defendant was entitled to routine costs and prevailing party

Costs: Fifth District, In A 2-1 Split Decision, Confirms That Judicial Council Trial Court Costs Memorandum Form Sufficed For A Verification Despite Not Having “Under Penalty of Perjury” Language

Cases: Costs

Panel Also Concluded That Aggregate Costs Descriptions And Failure To Apportion Out For Nonprevailing Parties Are Solid Bases To Tax Costs.             In Srabian v. Triangle Truck Center, Case No. F080066 (5th Dist. Aug. 12, 2022) (unpublished), the Fifth District faced an interesting legal question where a prevailing party used the MC-010 Judicial Council form

Bankruptcy Efforts, Costs, Ethics: Ninth Circuit Reiterates That Costs Associated With Attorney Disciplinary Proceedings Are Nondischargeable In A Chapter 7 Case

Cases: Bankruptcy Efforts, Cases: Costs, Cases: Ethics

$61,122.27 Was The Tab.             In Kassas v. State Bar of California, No. 21-55900 (9th Cir. Aug. 1, 2022) (published), the Ninth Circuit reiterated that, in line with In re Findley, 593 F.3d 1048 (9th Cir. 2010), the costs associated with a Chapter 7 debtor attorney’s disciplinary proceedings were nondischargeable under § 523(a)(7).

Costs: Challenges To Three Items Of Awarded Routine Costs Were Rejected On Appeal

Cases: Costs

Electronic Filing Fees, Messenger Costs For Serving Reply Papers, and Private Court Reporter Fees Were At Issue.             Plaintiff losing her case was hit with a relatively small routine costs award.  On appeal in Koerber v. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc., Case No. B312047 (2d Dist., Div. 2 July 13, 2022) (unpublished), plaintiff to no avail challenged

Costs: Plaintiff Unsuccessfully Appeals Postjudgment Costs Order Awarding $3,451.11 To Prevailing Defendants Arguing That His Deposition Testimony Should Have Been Precluded And Therefore Was Not A Recoverable Cost

Cases: Costs

Plaintiff’s Challenge To The Costs Order Was Precluded As It Ultimately Attacked A Prejudgment Order That Plaintiff Did Not Appeal And Did Not Challenge In Appeal Of The Judgment And Underlying Summary Judgment Ruling.             In Lopez v. Irvine Company LLC, Case No. G059354 (4th Dist., Div. 3 July 1, 2022) (unpublished), defendants defeated plaintiff’s

Civil Rights, Costs: Costs Relating To Non-FEHA Claims Affirmed, But Remand To Determine If Some Costs Were Justified Because FEHA Claim Was Frivolous

Cases: Civil Rights, Cases: Costs

Lack Of Trial Court Findings Required A Limited Remand On Possible FEHA Costs.             In a FEHA/non-FEHA mixed case, routine costs that true non-FEHA claim costs are recoverable but that overlapping FEHA/non-FEHA claim costs which cannot be apportioned can only be recovered if the FEHA claim was frivolous.  (Roman v. BRE Properties, Inc. (2015) 237

Costs: Where Successor Trustee Had To Join Parties Ultimately Dismissed To Obtain Possession Of Premises, Routine Costs Were Properly Awarded To Trustee For Activities Relating To the Dismissed Defendants

Cases: Costs

Prevailing Party Determination Is Pragmatic On Costs Awards As Well.             Successor trustee in Sutherland v. Arent, Case No. A161411 (1st Dist., Div. 1 June 14, 2022) (unpublished) was awarded costs after she finally obtained possession to a rental cabin by including dismissed defendants, with the dismissed defendants relinquishing possession to the trustee.  The primary

Costs: 9th Cir. Reverses FRCP 41(d) Fees As Costs Award For No Statutory Entitlement and No Allegations/Proof Of Bad Faith – Determining Fees Are Not Automatically Costs, But Majority Refuses To Determine If Allowed For Bad Faith/Forum Shopping

Cases: Costs

Partially Concurring/Dissenting Justice Would Vacate Costs Award And Remand To Determine If Bad Faith Existed, Wanting Ninth Circuit To Join Sister Circuits Finding That Bad Faith Can Be A Predicate For A Fees As Costs Award.             Moskowitz v. American Savings Bank, F.S.B., No. 20-15024 (9th Cir. June 10, 2022) (published) involved an interesting “attorney’s

Costs, Laffey Matrix, Reasonableness Of Fees: Losing Defendants/Cross-Complainants Properly Saddled With RFA Proof Of Sanctions Fees And Routine Costs

Cases: Costs, Cases: Laffey Matrix, Cases: Reasonableness of Fees

Prevailing Parties Requested $393,945.30 In Fees, But Only Awarded $38,920.14—A Win, But Adverse Party Still Unsuccessfully Appealed.             The next case, Duncombe v. Barfresh Food Group, Inc., Case No. B308385 (2d Dist., Div. 2 May 31, 2022) (unpublished), demonstrates an important lesson:  where you obtain a significantly diminished fee award at the trial court level,

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