FAMILY DOLLAR STORES OF FLORIDA, INC., APPELLANT,
v.
VENSY JONES, APPELLEE
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Family Dollar's appeal of a trial court cost award is partially reversed because expert witness fees for a deposition not used at trial cannot be taxed as costs.
Expert witness fees for depositions not used at trial cannot be taxed as costs.
[1] Expert witness fees for depositions not used at trial cannot be taxed as costs under Florida law and the Statewide Uniform Guidelines for Taxation of Costs in Civil Actio…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“It is not appropriate to tax as costs the fees of witnesses who are neither qualified as experts by the court nor testify at trial”
Thellman v. Tropical Acres Steakhouse, Inc., establishing the rule against taxing fees for non-testifying witnesses
Family Dollar appealed a trial court judgment awarding costs to the appellee, including a $400 expert witness fee for a witness whose deposition was n…
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PER CURIAM.
Appellant, Family Dollar Stores of Florida, Inc., (“Family Dollar”) appeals the trial court’s final judgment which awarded the Appellee costs. We reverse as to the taxation of costs of a $400 expert witness fee when the witness did not testify at trial and his deposition was not used at trial. See Thellman v. Tropical Acres Steakhouse, Inc., 557 So. 2d 683, 684 (Fla. 4th DCA 1900) (stating that “[i]t is not appropriate to tax as costs the fees of witnesses who are neither qualified as experts by the court nor testify at trial”); Otis Elevator Co. v. Bryan, 489 So. 2d 1189,1190-91 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986) (stating that “the taxation of expert witness fees for discovery depositions taken in preparation for trial simply because the attorney says that he used the discovery deposition to prepare for cross examination of the witness at trial” was improper). Furthermore, the Statewide Uniform Guidelines for Taxation of Costs in Civil Actions specifically states that expert witness fees “for the giving of a deposition when the deposition is not used in whole or in part at the trial ... should not be taxed as a cost item.” Reeser v. Boats Unlimited, Inc., 432 So. 2d 1346, 1349 n. 2 (Fla. 4th DCA 1983) (containing the administrative order reciting section 2G of the guidelines).
Accordingly, we reverse and remand for proceedings consistent with this opinion. We affirm as to all other issues on appeal.
AFFIRMED in part, REVERSED AND REMANDED in part.
POLEN, MAY, JJ., and DAMOORGIAN, DORIAN K„ Associate Judge, concur.
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Citator
Cited By
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Dr. Philip Colaizzo, M.D. v. Off. of Crim. Conflict & Civil Reg'l Counsel, 82 So. 3d 195 (Fla. 4th DCA 2012)…no “prevailing party” entitled to tax costs. It is doubtful that the expert witness fee could be taxed as a cost where the witness did not testify at trial and his deposition was not used at a trial. See Family Dollar Stores of Fla., Inc. v. Jones, 867 So. 2d 1278 (Fla. 4th DCA 2004). Colaizzo does not seek recovery under section 92.142, Florida Statutes (2008), a statute that would entitle him to $5 per day and 6 cents per mile. We have been able to find no other statute, and the parties have not cited to an…
Authorities Cited
- Dick Reeser and Margaret Reeser v. Boats Unlimited, Inc., 432 So. 2d 1346 (Fla. 4th DCA 1983)
- Otis Elevator Co. v. Bryan, 489 So. 2d 1189 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986)
- Tedder v. State, 557 So. 2d 683 (Fla. 2d DCA 1990)
- Thellman v. Tropical Acres Steakhouse, Inc., 557 So. 2d 683 (Fla. 4th DCA 1990)