Opinion ID: 1834217
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Larson, supra.

Text: Schrader could have had one of the medical experts read the treatise to the jury but did not do so. The trial court properly refused a reading of the article by a lay person who would be unable to explain the treatise to the jury.
The trial court assessed disbursements in favor of defendants and against plaintiff in the amount of $8,660.60. Schrader appeals that part of the award which allows expert witness fees and attorney travel expenses. Effective July 1, 1992, SDCL 15-17-37 replaced SDCL 15-17-4, allowing taxation of disbursements: The prevailing party in a civil action or special proceeding may recover expenditures necessarily incurred in gathering and procuring evidence or bringing the matter to trial. Such expenditures include costs of telephonic hearings, costs of telephoto or fax charges, fees of witnesses, interpreters, translators, officers, printers, service of process, filing, expenses from telephone calls, copying, costs of original and copies of transcripts and reporter's attendance fees, court appointed experts and other similar expenses and charges. These expenditures are termed disbursements and are taxed pursuant to § 15-6-54(d). SDCL 15-17-37 (1994). [] The trial court did not have the benefit of our decision in Nelson v. Nelson Cattle Co., 513 N.W.2d 900 (S.D.1994), which we rendered while this appeal was pending. We concluded that the new statute did not contemplate the payment of fees to experts not appointed by the court, above and beyond the statutory witness fee authorized by SDCL 19-5-1. The expert witnesses involved here were not appointed by the court. Id. at 907. We further held SDCL 15-17-37 inapplicable to cases commenced prior to July 1, 1992, and determined subsequent to that date. This action was commenced in December 1991, and judgment was entered on March 15, 1993. The trial court also allowed travel expenses of defense counsel in connection with taking of depositions, including those taken in Denver and Minneapolis. They argue that these are other similar expenses and charges incurred in gathering and procuring evidence and bringing the matter to trial, within the meaning of SDCL 15-17-37. We disagree. Had the legislature intended to include these expenses they would have said so, as they did with costs of transcripts and court reporter attendance fees. We hold that attorney travel expenses in connection with the taking of depositions are not other similar expenses and charges within the meaning of SDCL 15-17-37. Alternatively, defendants' argue that expert witness fees may be assessed pursuant to SDCL 15-17-44, which provides: If there is no specific statutory authorization allowed for taxation of disbursements in a civil action or special proceeding, taxation of disbursements may be allowed in the discretion of the court. This statute was enacted effective July 1, 1992, as a companion to SDCL 15-17-37, and which was subsequent to the commencement of this action. In Nelson, supra, we concluded that retroactive application of 15-17-37 would create a new and substantially greater liability for witness fees and therefore should be prospective only. We take the same position with respect to SDCL 15-17-44, giving it prospective application only. Id. at 908. We conclude that the trial court abused its discretion by allowance of expert witness fees and attorney travel expenses, and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. We need not address Schrader's additional claim that the award of expert witness fees and attorney travel expenses violates the Open Courts provision of the South Dakota Constitution, art. VI, § 20. We affirm in part, reverse in part and remand for new trial. MILLER, C.J., and HENDERSON, Retired Justice, and DOBBERPUHL, Circuit Judge, concur. AMUNDSON, J., concurs in part and dissents in part. JOHNSON, Circuit Judge, for WUEST, J., disqualified. DOBBERPUHL, Circuit Judge, for SABERS, J., disqualified. KONENKAMP, J., not having been a member of the Court at the time this action was submitted, did not participate.