Opinion
Case No. 04-61071-CIV-COHN.
April 11, 2005
ORDER GRANTING MOTION FOR COSTS
THIS CAUSE is before the Court upon Defendants' Verified Motion to Tax Costs [DE 38]. The Court has carefully considered the motion and is otherwise fully advised in the premises, including the lack of timely opposition to the motion.
On February 28, 2005, this Court granted final summary judgment to Defendants. On March 17, 2005, counsel for Defendants electronically filed a verified motion for costs, seeking $1,741.25 in taxable costs. The motion contained a certification that it was served by mail upon Plaintiff's counsel on March 17, 2005. Thus, a response to the motion was due by April 1, 2005. No opposition has been filed to date.
Despite the lack of opposition, the Court has reviewed Defendant's motion and finds it meritorious. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 54(d) provides that "costs other than attorneys' fees shall be allowed as of course to the prevailing party unless the court otherwise directs." The Supreme Court has interpreted Rule 54(d) to grant federal courts discretion to refuse to tax costs in favor of the prevailing party. See Crawford Fitting Co. v. J.T. Gibbons, Inc., 482 U.S. 437, 442 (1987). Moreover, "[i]n the exercise of sound discretion, trial courts are accorded great latitude in ascertaining taxable costs."Loughan v. Firestone Tire Rubber Co., 749 F.2d 1519, 1526 (11th Cir. 1985) (citing United States v. Kolesar, 313 F.2d 835 (5th Cir. 1963)). However, in exercising its discretion to tax costs, absent explicit statutory authorization, federal courts are limited to those costs specifically enumerated in 28 U.S.C. § 1920. Crawford Fitting Co, 482 U.S. 437, 445 (1987).
28 U.S.C. § 1920, taxation of costs, provides as follows:
A judge or clerk of any court of the United States may tax as costs the following:
(1) Fees of the clerk and marshal;
(2) Fees of the court reporter for all or any part of the stenographic transcript necessarily obtained for use in the case;
(3) Fees and disbursements for printing and witnesses;
(4) Fees for exemplification and copies of papers necessarily obtained for use in the case;
(5) Docket fees under section 1923 of this title;
(6) Compensation of court appointed experts, compensation of interpreters, and salaries, fees, expenses, and costs of special interpretation services under section 1828 of this title.
In the present case, Defendants seek costs for the following items: (1) fees for the court reporter and transcripts of certain depositions ($1,520.99) and (2) fees for printing ($220.26). The deposition costs stem from the depositions of Plaintiff and of Defendant's corporate representative, Gerald Alessi. The "printing" costs are actually copying costs, and stem from Defendants' motion for summary judgment and Defendants' response to Plaintiff's discovery requests. Defendants' motion contains receipts supporting these costs and the motion is verified. Thus, even if objections were filed, the Court would have granted the motion.
The fact that Plaintiff filed a Notice of Appeal on March 22, 2005 does not divest this Court of jurisdiction to resolve the motion to tax costs.
Accordingly it is ORDERED AND ADJUDGED that Defendants' Verified Motion to Tax Costs [DE 38] is hereby GRANTED. The Court separately enter judgment for $1,741.25.