Opinion ID: 1112080
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: award of costs for defense experts.

Text: Essentially, Norris contests the amounts awarded here in costs for expert witness fees under Alaska Administrative Rule 7(c) [11] as being greater than those allowed by the rule. A review of the Bill of Costs filed by Gatts shows that the expert witness expenses were not broken down by hour. These expenses were considered by the trial court and sums awarded with no inquiry into the number of hours each witness had expended while employed and testifying as an expert, as required in order properly to award no greater than $25.00 per hour according to Rule 7(c). In Hayes v. Xerox Corp., 718 P.2d 929, 940 (Alaska 1986), we found that it was impossible to determine on review whether or not the requirements of Rule 7(c) were met since no hourly breakdown was provided. We remanded the item of costs to the superior court to redetermine according to the mandate of Rule 7(c). Id. We do the same here. Gatts argued that Alaska Civil Rule 79(b), which provides for recovery of expenses necessarily incurred in order to enable a party to secure some right accorded him in an action or proceeding makes an award of expert witness fees in excess of the $25.00 per hour authorized by Rule 7(c) permissible. We caution the trial court that it does not. See Miller v. Sears, 636 P.2d 1183, 1195 (Alaska 1981).