California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from Dixon Gas Club LLC v. Safeway Inc., A139910 (Cal. App. 2015):
"If the items appearing in a cost bill appear to be proper charges, the burden is on the party seeking to tax costs to show that they were not reasonable or necessary. On the other hand, if the items are properly objected to, they are put in issue and the burden of proof is on the party claiming them as costs. [Citations.] Whether a cost item was reasonably necessary to the litigation presents a question of fact for the trial court and its decision is reviewed for abuse of discretion. [Citation.] However, because the right to costs is governed strictly by statute [citation] a court has no discretion to award costs not statutorily authorized. [Citations.]" (Ladas, supra, 19 Cal.App.4th at p. 774. See also Carver v. Chevron U.S.A., Inc. (2002) 97 Cal.App.4th 132, 142 ["de novo review of . . . a trial court [cost] order is warranted where the determination of whether the criteria for
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