Motion to Strike or Tax Plaintiff’s Costs
2023CUBC011822: JASMINE GUTIERREZ vs MERCEDES BENZ USA LLC, et al. 05/26/2026 in Department 44 Motion to Strike or Tax Plaintiff's Costs
Effective January 5, 2026, Judge Charmaine H. Buehner and all cases previously assigned to Department J4 at the Juvenile Justice Center in Oxnard transferred to Department 44, located at the Hall of Justice, 800 South Victoria Avenue, Ventura, California 93009.
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Motion: Defendant Mercedes-Benz USA, LLCs Motion to Strike or Tax Plaintiffs Costs
Tentative Ruling:
Defendant Mercedes-Benz USA, LLCs Motion to Strike or Tax Plaintiffs Costs is GRANTED IN PART.
General Principles
In the absence of an authorizing statute, each party must bear its own costs of litigation. (Carr Business Enterprises, Inc. v. City of Chowchilla (2008) 166 Cal.App.4th 25, 30.) The right to recover costs is entirely a creature of statute [citation], and section 1032 is the fundamental authority for awarding costs in civil actions. (Brown v. Desert Christian Center (2011) 193 Cal.App.4th 733, 737
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2023CUBC011822: JASMINE GUTIERREZ vs MERCEDES BENZ USA LLC, et al.
If the buyer prevails in an action under this section, the buyer shall be allowed by the court to recover as part of the judgment a sum equal to the aggregate amount of costs and expenses, including attorneys fees based on actual time expended, determined by the court to have been reasonably incurred by the buyer in connection with the commencement and prosecution of such action. (Code Civ. Proc., § 1794, subd. (d).) Costs and expenses outside of those allowable under Code of Civil Procedure section 1033.5 may be allowed under Civil Code section 1794, subdivision (d), so long as they were reasonably necessary to the conduct of the litigation and were reasonable in amount. (Warren v.
Kia Motors America, Inc. (2018) 30 Cal.App.5th 24, 42-43; see also Jensen v. BMW of North America, Inc. (1995) 35 Cal.App.4th 112, 137-138, disapproved on other grounds in Rodriguez v. FCA US LLC (2024) 17 Cal.5th 189, 204-205; Hanna v. Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (2019) 36 Cal.App.5th 493, 506-507.) The burden is on the prevailing buyer to establish reasonableness. (Hanna, supra, at p. 507.)
Discussion
Defendant Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC moves to strike or tax $1,770.59 of the $1,842.59 sought under Category 16 of the memorandum of costs on grounds that some of the costs have not actually been incurred, are not recoverable, and/or are not reasonable, specifically, $1,455.65 for attorney services, messenger court filings, and service; $250 for court appearance professionals; and $64.94 for travel.
In support of the attorney service and messenger fees, Plaintiff argues that the companies used to perform the tasks are commonly used by law firms to file documents. (Cutler Decl., ¶ 5.) Plaintiff has produced invoices supporting all costs incurred, including the items at issue here. (Id., ¶ 4 and Exh. A.) The Attorney Services and Messenger Court Filings and Service fees total $1,324.65, rather than $1,455.65, as listed on the memorandum of costs. This error is acknowledged in the opposition. (Opp. at 7:27-28, fn. 1.) Thus, initially, the Court initially disallows $131 to account for this difference.
The remainder of the costs are supported by Rapid Legal invoices. Plaintiff cites Ladas v. California State Auto Assn. (1993) 19 Cal.App.4th 761 in support of its argument that these costs are recoverable. In that case, the Court of Appeal approved courier and messenger charges of $2,518.91 because they were supported by a declaration asserting that the charges were related to trial preparation and were incurred for matters such as filing documents with the court, complying with appellants document demands, and transporting exhibits to and from the courtroom. The court found that the declaration constituted substantial evidence that these charges were reasonably necessary and affirmed the denial of the motion to tax such costs. (Id. at p. 776.)
Here, the fees charges were usually $10 (courtesy copies), $20 (filing of a declaration), $60 (motion or other filing), or $120 (filing over 50 pages). The Court finds that the fees were reasonably incurred and necessary to advance the litigation, except the Court will disallow $43.15 of the $1,324.65, which reflects charges for credit card processing fees, payment processing fees, or EFM fees. The total approved for these fees is $1,281.50.
Plaintiff also seeks $125 apiece for appearances by appearance attorneys on November 8, 2024, and December 4, 2024, and mileage of $64.94 in connection with the November 8th appearance.
2023CUBC011822: JASMINE GUTIERREZ vs MERCEDES BENZ USA LLC, et al.
A review of the register of actions shows that these dates coincide with the trial setting and continued trial setting conferences. In support of the court appearance attorney costs, Plaintiff argues that using an appearance attorney saved money because if someone from Plaintiffs counsels firm had appeared at such hearings, the attorney fees sought in this matter would have been higher. (Id., ¶ 5.) The Court disallows the costs, finding that they were for counsels convenience and were not reasonably necessary to the conduct of the litigation. (Warren v. Kia Motors America, Inc. (2018) 30 Cal.App.5th 24, 42-43; see also Ladas, supra, 19 Cal.App.4th at p. 775 [The only travel expenses authorized by section 1033.5 are those to attend depositions. (citing Code Civ. Proc., § 1033.5, subd. (a)(3))].)
In sum, the Court grants the motion in part and taxes costs in the amount of $489.09. The motion is otherwise denied. Plaintiffs request for attorney fees in connection with this motion is also denied.
Counsel for Defendant is to give notice of the Courts ruling.
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