are "costs of suit" and "attorney's fees" separte? If defendant is awarded Costs of Suit, can he submit fees?

Question

This was a state of california superior court case

Answer 1

Depends on if it's a civil case (tort), or criminal. Depends on a lot of things. Ask the attorney. It's their fees and costs.

Costs are things such as filing the court suit, the complaint, the answer to the complaint, motions, etc. The court charges fees for these items. There may also be costs like expert witness fees, and even postage and fax fees -- which may not make up a part of the attorney fees.

So, yes they are separate. In most states, the prevailing party (i.e., the winner) gets "prevailing party" fees. All these things are dependent on the type of case -- civil / criminal -- what the state allows, what the contract stipulates. In tort cases, perhaps an attorney clause provision is already written up in the language of the contract. It depends what the attorney has agreed to with their client.

Ask the attorney if you have questions.

Answer 2

As a general rule, "costs" simply means the amount paid to the courts for filing the complaint and other fees, such as the jury fee. The winner usually get his "costs' refunded by the other party. Attorney fees are seldom awarded by a court, unless there is a law specifically allowing them in that kind of lawsuit, or unless the original contract between the parties provides that the loser must pay attorney fees if there is legal action. For example, most consumer loan agreements require that if the consumer doesn't pay and the lender has to sue to collect, then the consumer agrees to pay the lender's legal fees if the lender wins the case in court. You can always ask, however.