Can a prevailing party recover expert witness fees under a contract?

Neither Civil Code section 1717 nor Code of Civil Procedure section 1033.5 expressly addresses the recovery of expert witness fees by a prevailing party under a contractual provision. The court in Bussey v. Affleck (1990) 225 Cal.App.3d 1162 (Bussey), took a first pass at this issue, holding a prevailing party could recover, under the guise of "attorney's fees," all the expenses ordinarily incurred by counsel and billed to the client, including expert witness fees. (Id. at p. 1166.) The court rejected the argument this was inconsistent with section 1033.5, which allows fees only for experts ordered by the court, noting that under section 1033.5, subdivision (c)(4), "items assessed upon application may be allowed or denied in the court's discretion." (Bussey, at p. 1167.)