Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-cand-3_03-cv-03721/USCOURTS-cand-3_03-cv-03721-28/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 190
Nature of Suit: Other Contract Actions
Cause of Action: 28:1332 Diversity-Other Contract

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

FEDERAL AGRICULTURAL

MORTGAGE CORP.,

Plaintiff(s),

v.

IT'S A JUNGLE OUT THERE ,

INC dba VINTAGE CAPITAL, 

et al.,

Defendant(s).

AND RELATED CLAIMS.

 

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No. C 03-3721 BZ

ORDER GRANTING NEW CENTURY’S

MOTION FOR REVIEW OF CLERK’S

TAXATION OF COSTS 

After the Clerk of this court taxed costs according to

the objections of It’s a Jungle Out There, Inc. dba Vintage

Capital and its principals Robert Lee Hower and Ami Cheri

Hower (collectively “Vintage Capital”), third party defendant

New Century Title Company (“New Century”) filed this motion

for review, arguing that the Clerk improperly reduced costs

from New Century’s requested amount of $4,207.53 to

$2,774.03. Vintage Capital claims the depositions of Rodney

Case 3:03-cv-03721-BZ Document 446 Filed 05/08/06 Page 1 of 3
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Avey and Mark Rickels were not “necessarily obtained for use

in the case.” 28 U.S.C. § 1920(2). New Century counters

that Avey and Rickels were key persons at Zions National Bank

(“Zions”), whose depositions were necessary to establish the

parties to the escrow agreement. Bardellini Decl. ¶ 3. 

Courts have ruled that “depositions are not obtained

unnecessarily even if they are not essential to the court’s

final resolution of the case.” In re Aviva Gelato, Inc., 94

B.R. 622, 625 (B.A.P. 9th Cir. 1988)(construing necessary

costs which are taxable under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure

54(d)). The court reviews the Clerk’s taxation of costs de

novo. Lopez v. San Francisco Unified School Dist., 385

F.Supp.2d 981, 1001 (N.D. Cal. 2005). 

Avey testified at the trial, and New Century used

portions of his deposition in its statement of facts for its

summary judgment motion. At the time of Rickels’ deposition,

his testimony, as a Zions employee with responsibility for

the Vintage Capital matter at issue in the case, was

necessary. Aviva, 94 B.R. at 625 (“a trial court should make

the determination [of whether a cost is necessary] in light

of the situation existing at the time the deposition was

taken”). Therefore, even if the court did not explicitly

rely on Avey’s and Rickels’ depositions to grant summary

judgment, their depositions were necessarily obtained. IT IS

HEREBY ORDERED that New Century’s motion is GRANTED and the

Clerk shall tax costs in the amount of $4,207.53. Because 

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the court finds no need for further argument, IT IS FURTHER

ORDERED that the hearing scheduled for May 10, 2006 is

VACATED. 

DATED: May 8, 2006 

 Bernard Zimmerman

 United States Magistrate Judge 

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