Carwash of America-PO LLC v. Windswept Ventures No. I, LLC

Opinion

HULL, J.

Where judgment is entered for the plaintiff on a claim for breach of contract, and the contract contains a provision permitting the prevailing party to recover expert witness fees, such fees may not be awarded as an item of costs but must be pleaded and proven separately. (Ripley v. Pappadopoulos (1994) 23 Cal.App.4th 1616, 1627 [28 Cal.Rptr.2d 878].) In this matter, we conclude the same rule applies to a prevailing defendant.

After obtaining summary judgment on plaintiff’s breach of contract claims, defendants sought reimbursement for expert witness fees incurred in connection…