More Categories

Rule 901 – Costs – Items Allowed

May 11, 2021 | Family Law, Idaho

A. Parties entitled to costs. Except when otherwise limited by these rules, costs shall be allowed as a matter of right to the prevailing party or parties, unless otherwise ordered by the court.
B. Prevailing party. In determining which party to an action is a prevailing party and entitled to costs, the trial court shall in its sound discretion consider the final judgment or result of the action in relation to the relief sought by the respective parties. The trial court in its sound discretion may determine that a party to an action prevailed in part and did not prevail in part, and upon so finding may apportion the costs between and among the parties in a fair and equitable manner after considering all of the issues and claims involved in the action and the resultant judgment or judgments obtained.
C. Costs as a matter of right. When costs are awarded to a party, such party shall be entitled to the following costs, actually paid, as a matter of right:

1. Court filing fees, including any fees incidental to electronic filing.
2. Actual fees for service of any pleading or document in the action whether served by a public officer or other person.
3. Witness fees of $20.00 per day for each day in which a witness, other than a party or expert, testifies at a deposition or in the trial of an action.
4. Travel expenses of witnesses who travel by private transportation, other than a party, who testify in the trial of an action, computed at the rate of $.30 per mile, one way, from the place of residence, whether it be within or without the state of Idaho; travel expenses of witnesses who travel other than by private transportation, other than a party, computed as the actual travel expenses of the witness not to exceed $.30 per mile, one way, from the place of residence of the witness, whether it be within or without the state of Idaho.
5. Expenses or charges of certified copies of documents admitted as evidence in a hearing or the trial of an action.
6. Reasonable costs of the preparation of models, maps, pictures, photographs, or other exhibits admitted in evidence as exhibits in a hearing or trial of an action, but not to exceed the sum of $500 for all of such exhibits of each party.
7. Cost of all bond premiums.
8. Reasonable expert witness fees for an expert who testifies at a deposition or at a trial of an action not to exceed the sum of $2,000 for each expert witness for all appearances.
9. Charges for reporting and transcribing of a deposition taken in preparation for trial of an action, whether or not read into evidence in the trial of an action.
10. Charges for one (1) copy of any deposition taken by any of the parties to the action in preparation for trial of the action.

Notwithstanding the determination that a particular party is entitled to costs as a matter of right under this subparagraph C in an action, the trial court in its sound discretion may, upon proper objection, disallow any of the above described costs upon a finding that said costs were not reasonably incurred; were incurred for the purpose of harassment; were incurred in bad faith; or were incurred for the purpose of increasing the costs to any other party. The mere fact that a deposition is not used in the trial of an action, either as evidence read into the record or for the purposes of impeachment, shall not indicate that the taking of such deposition was not reasonable, or that a copy of a deposition was not reasonably obtained, or that the cost of the deposition should otherwise be disallowed, so long as its taking was reasonable in the preparation for trial in the action.

D. Discretionary costs. Additional items of cost not enumerated in, or in an amount in excess of that listed in subparagraph C, may be allowed upon a showing that said costs were necessary and exceptional costs reasonably incurred, and should in the interest of justice be assessed against the adverse party. The trial court, in ruling upon objections to such discretionary costs contained in the memorandum of costs, shall make express findings as to why such specific item of discretionary cost should or should not be allowed. In the absence of any objection to such an item of discretionary costs, the court may disallow on its own motion any such items of discretionary costs and shall make express findings supporting such disallowance.
E. Costs incurred by the court. The Court may assess and apportion as costs between and among the parties to the action, in the sound discretion of the court, all fees and expenses of masters, receivers or expert witnesses appointed by the court in the action.
F. Costs and attorney fees – fees on execution of judgment – added to judgment. All costs and attorney fees approved by the court and fees for the service of the writ of execution upon a judgment shall be deemed automatically added to the judgment as costs and collected by the sheriff in addition to the amount of the judgment and other allowed costs. In the event the return of the sheriff upon a writ of execution indicates that the service costs were not obtained through the service of the writ, the clerk of the court shall automatically add the uncollected service fees to the judgment as additional costs.

Id. Fam. Law. P. 901

Adopted April 2, 2014, effective for early adoptersJuly 1, 2014, effective statewide July 1, 2015; amended May 3, 2018, effective July 1, 2018.