Opinion ID: 889724
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 16

Heading: Issue 4. Did the District Court err in denying the Larsens' request for certain costs?

Text: ¶ 73 Following the District Court's entry of its Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law and Order, the Larsens filed a Bill of Costs. The District Court granted some of the requested costs and denied others. The Larsens' arguments on appeal relate to the costs associated with preparing maps and surveys. ¶ 74 Section 25-10-201(8), MCA, provides that a party is entitled to include in their bill of costs the reasonable expenses for making a map or maps if required and necessary to be used on trial or hearing. This Court has held repeatedly that expenses incurred in preparing maps, surveys, and charts for the purpose of explaining the factual situation to the court are allowed as recoverable costs. See Johnson v. Jarrett, 169 Mont. 408, 417, 548 P.2d 144, 149 (1976); Funk v. Robbin, 212 Mont. 437, 449, 689 P.2d 1215, 1222 (1984); Goodover v. Lindey's Inc., 255 Mont. 430, 443-44, 843 P.2d 765, 773 (1992). ¶ 75 The District Court denied costs for maps and surveys in this case for two reasons. First, the court observed that COS 5900 was prepared prior to the filing of this lawsuit and, thus, the costs related to the preparation of COS 5900 were not recoverable. Second, citing Witty v. Pluid, 220 Mont. 272, 714 P.2d 169 (1986), the court observed that expert witness fees are limited to $10.00 per day for each day the expert testifies. ¶ 76 The error in this analysis, as the Larsens point out, is that they are not claiming costs for the preparation of COS 5900 and are not claiming expert witness fees. Rather, they are claiming costs for the preparation of additional and supplemental maps for purposes of trial. They note that the bills submitted by WGM Group (Weatherly's firm) include charges for additional survey work and for preparing additional maps to explain to the court the facts at issue. While the Richardsons submit that none of these maps were required or necessary to be used at trial, the record belies this contention. The transcript is replete with references by counsel, various witnesses, and the trial judge to points on the supplemental maps prepared by Weatherly. These maps were introduced into evidence; in fact, one of them is included among the Richardsons' own trial exhibits. Furthermore, this case revolved around two surveyors' contradictory conclusions about the location of the boundary line at issue. To explain how they reached their respective conclusions, numerous maps, diagrams, and photographs were introduced at trial. There was exhaustive testimony regarding deeds that refer to fences, jogs, and roads and that contain bearings and distances which do not precisely line up with existing ground conditions. The maps and surveys created by Weatherly provided important details not included in COS 5900, were critical for an understanding of Weatherly's and Milam's differing interpretations of the deeds, and assisted the court in determining the existence and location of the boundary line at issue. ¶ 77 Accordingly, pursuant to § 25-10-201(8), MCA, the Larsens are entitled to costs for the reasonable expenses incurred in preparing the additional maps and surveys for purposes of trial. The District Court's June 9, 2010 Opinion and Order re: Attorney's Fees and Costs is reversed to this limited extent, and the case is remanded to the District Court for further proceedings on this one issue. ¶ 78 The Richardsons contend that some of the charges included in the WGM Group invoices do not relate specifically to the preparation of maps. We agree that any charges which were not incurred specifically in making the additional maps and surveys are not recoverable under § 25-10-201(8), MCA. But this is a factual matter to be resolved by the District Court on remand.