Opinion ID: 2631240
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Depositions of Plaintiff and Plaintiff's Family and Friends

Text: ¶ 11 The trial court awarded the hospital $425.20 for depositions taken by the hospital of plaintiff and her husband, and $724.25 for depositions taken of plaintiff's friends and other family members. The hospital claims that the award of these costs was within the permitted range of the trial court's discretion because the plaintiff's deposition was used at trial and included in the court record and several of the depositions [of her family and friends] were used at trial for impeachment. However, in allowing the hospital to recover these amounts, the trial court failed to state how the depositions were essential to the hospital's case. The trial court must find that the depositions were essential because they were used in a meaningful way at trial, or because the development of the case was of such a complex nature that the information in the depositions could not be obtained through less expensive means of discovery, before the hospital can recover these amounts as costs. The trial court merely concluded that all of the hospital's costs were reasonable and necessary and granted the hospital recovery on that basis. ¶ 12 Because the trial court did not explain the basis for the award, we are unable to determine whether or not the trial court exceeded the permitted range of discretion in awarding the hospital amounts it spent for these depositions as costs. We therefore remand this issue to the trial court with instructions to provide supporting findings as to how these depositions were essential for the development and presentation of the hospital's case, or for revision of the award of costs consistent with the analysis in this opinion. [3]