Miles California Co. v. Hawkins

WARNE, J. pro tem.

*

On April 1, 1959, appellants were adjudged in contempt for violation of a permanent injunction. The formal order which was filed contained no provision as to costs. However, on April 9, 1959, respondent filed a memorandum of the items of its costs and disbursements within the time permitted by section 1033 of the Code of Civil Procedure. Appellants then filed a notice of motion to strike said memorandum of costs and a hearing was had thereon. The trial court denied the motion to strike and awarded the respondent costs in the sum of $122.15, which award it ordered entered on the margin of the order adjudging appellants in contempt.

Appellants contend that a judgment or order made in a contempt proceeding is final and conclusive, exhausts the jurisdiction of the court, and therefore, since the contempt order made no provision for costs, the trial court thereafter had no jurisdiction to award costs.

We have concluded that the defendants’ contention is unsound and that the order must be affirmed.

Section 1032 of the Code of Civil Procedure provides that: “In the superior court, except as otherwise expressly

[164]

provided, costs are allowed of course: (a) To plaintiff upon a judgment in his favor; ... in a special proceeding; . . . ” Contempt is a special proceeding. (See Code Civ. Proc., pt. 3, “Special Proceedings of a Civil Nature.”) Thus we have express statutory authority for the award of costs to a successful plaintiff in a contempt proceeding. No qualifications or conditions are imposed. They are allowed as “of course, ” i.e., as a matter of right as an incident of the judgment given upon the issues in the action the moment of its rendition, “accruing only upon verified claim therefor.”

(Ferrara

v.

Jordan,

134 Cal.App.2d Supp. 917, 918 [286 P.2d 589, 54 A.L.R,.2d 925]; see also

McMahan’s

v.

McMahan Service Corp.,