Court Opinion

ID: 9537994
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 07:28:21.759298+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T14:57:16.465774
License: Public Domain

ON MOTION FOR COSTS
SUMMERS, Justice.
In an action arising out of the sale and financing of a mobile home Appellant Sun-rizon Homes was successful in this Court on a petition for certiorari to the Court of Appeals. (See page 103.) In a pre-man-date motion Sunrizon now requests costs on appeal, including the cost of copying Petition and briefs.
Costs were not recoverable at common law and we look to statutes and court rules to determine the scope of costs recoverable. Owens v. Clark, 177 Okl. 519, 61 P.2d 201, 203 (1936). Costs on appeal are authorized pursuant to 12 O.S.1981 § 978 when a judgment or final order is reversed. See also, Chamberlin v. Chamberlin, 720 P.2d 721, 725-727 (Okl.1986).
This court has stated on at least three occasions that recovery of the expense in printing briefs is not a statutorily sanctioned “cost”. National Educators Life Insurance Co. v. Apache Lanes, Inc., 555 P.2d 600, 602 (Okl.1976); City of Moore v. Central Oklahoma Master Conservancy District, 441 P.2d 452, 461 (Okl.1968); Combs et al. v. Miller, 105 P. 322 (Okl.1909). A statutory exception to this general rule under 12 O.S.1981 § 1276 has been noted in divorce cases, Durland v. Durland, 552 P.2d 1148, 1149 (Okl.1976) and Dowdell v. Dowdell, 463 P.2d 948, 953 (Okl.1970). Sunrizon, however, has not cited any authority to support an award for the expense of copying briefs as costs in a case such as the one herein. We conclude that recovering the cost of producing copies of briefs or copies of petitions for certiorari is not permissible in this case.
Appellant’s request for recovery of costs for copies of Brief in Chief, copies of Reply Brief, and copies of Petition is hereby denied. 12 O.S.1981, § 978.
Appellant’s request to recover costs for an appeal fee required by 20 O.S.Supp.1986 § 15, certiorari fee required by 20 O.S. Supp.1986 § 30.4, and record fee required by 28 O.S.1981 § 155.1, is hereby granted. 12 O.S.1981, § 978.
HARGRAVE, C.J., OPALA, V.C.J., and HODGES, LAVENDER, SIMMS, ALMA WILSON and KAUGER, JJ., concur.