Michael CALLICRATE, dba Callicrate Cattle Company, Plaintiff-Appellant-Cross-Appellee, v. FARMLAND INDUSTRIES, INC., a Kansas corporation, Defendant-Appellee, Jim Thomas, an individual, Defendant-Appellee-Cross-Appellant, and The Co-Operative Union Mercantile Company, a Kansas Co-Operative, Defendant-Appellee-Cross-Appellant.
Nos. 96-3075, 96-3100 and 96-3101
United States Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit.
March 27, 1998.
139 F.3d 1336
IX
The sentencing court found that Durham‘s role in the conspiracy was that of a low-paid broker and, as such, he was less culpable than the “average participant.” 17 R. at 2181. Consequently, the court found that Durham‘s role fell between that of a minor and a minimal participant under
“A trial court‘s findings concerning a defendant‘s role in a particular offense are treated by an appellate court as factual findings, which are subject to deferential review under the clearly erroneous standard.” United States v. Santistevan, 39 F.3d 250, 253 (10th Cir.1994) (quoting United States v. Chavez-Palacios, 30 F.3d 1290, 1295 (10th Cir.1994)). It is undisputed that Montgomery was the leader of the drug distribution organization that is the subject of this case and that Evans was his partner. Durham‘s role was limited to facilitating sales; proceeds from those sales went predominantly to conspirators other than Durham. Furthermore, Durham had no dealings with Evans or Montgomery for over two years prior to Montgomery contacting him pursuant to his agreement with the government. On the record before us, we conclude the sentencing court made no clear error.
AFFIRMED.
T.J. Carney, Bradley, Campbell, Carney & Madsen, Golden, CO (Lee Turner, Great Bend, KS, with him on the brief), for Plaintiff-Appellant-Cross-Appellee, Michael Callicrate, dba Callicrate Cattle Company.
Brian W. Wood, Hampton, Royce, Engleman & Nelson, Salina, KS (Clarence L. King, Jr. of Hampton, Royce, Engleman & Nelson, Salina, KS, and Timothy B. Mustaine of Foulston & Siefkin, Wichita, KS, on the brief), for Defendants-Appellees-Cross-Appellants, Jim Thomas and The Co-Operative Union Mercantile Company.
Before KELLY, HOLLOWAY and HENRY, Circuit Judges.
HOLLOWAY, Circuit Judge.
Plaintiff-Appellant-Cross-Appellee, Michael Callicrate, brought this action against defendants Farmland Industries, Inc., Jim Thomas, and The Co-Operative Union Mercantile Company (Co-Op) in the United States District Court for the District of Kansas, alleging diversity jurisdiction pursuant to
Following its order of dismissal, the district court awarded costs in favor of all defendants, but imposed a stay of such award with respect to Defendants-Appellees-Cross-Appellants Jim Thomas and The Co-Operative Union Mercantile Company. On appeal, in No. 96-3075 Callicrate contends that the district court clearly erred by finding the costs proper for necessary depositions and documents and abused its discretion by imposing excessive costs. In No. 96-3100 Thomas’ cross-appeal seeks reversal of the stay of the cost award in his favor. The Co-Operative in its cross-appeal in No. 96-3101 says that the district court correctly taxed costs but erred in staying execution of the order taxing costs.2 We have jurisdiction by virtue of
I
Plaintiff Michael Callicrate brought this action in November of 1993 alleging various state-law claims arising out of a dispute involving the sale of protein feed supplement by defendant, The Co-Operative (Co-Op), to Callicrate. Callicrate based subject matter jurisdiction on diversity of citizenship under
In January and February of 1995, Callicrate filed two separate motions for partial summary judgment against Co-Op and Thomas, to which these defendants eventually filed a response. All defendants additionally filed motions to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction in March of 1995, alleging that Callicrate was, in fact, a resident of Kansas. The depositions of ten individuals were cited or used by the parties in these jurisdictional motions and briefs and in Callicrate‘s motions for partial summary judgment.4 In July of 1995, the district court granted defendants’ motions to dismiss for want of subject matter jurisdiction, finding that Callicrate was a citizen of Kansas rather than Wyoming and concluding that complete diversity between the parties was therefore lacking. In its order of dismissal, the district court referenced five of the depositions submitted by the parties. Callicrate subsequently refiled his action in a Kansas state court in September of 1995 against Co-Op and Thomas, but not against Farmland.
Following the district court‘s order of dismissal, all defendants submitted a bill of costs and Callicrate filed objections to the requested costs. In January of 1996, the Clerk awarded Farmland $8,146 for copying expenses, Thomas $31,088.69 for deposition transcripts, copying and printing expenses, and Co-Op $9,735.93 for deposition transcripts and copying expenses. Callicrate subsequently moved to retax the costs, and the district court entered an order upholding the costs assessed by the Clerk. However, recognizing that some of the assessed costs may be reassessed in the state court action, the district court imposed a stay on the execution of the award of costs with respect to Co-Op and Thomas, pending disposition of the state court action.5 The district court
II
We must keep in mind the fact that in the instant case we are dealing with what are “just costs” under
The costs at issue here involve expenses covering the transcribing and/or copying of twenty depositions.7 Callicrate argues that the defendants made no showing that the depositions were necessarily obtained for use in the case. Further, Callicrate maintains that the majority, if not all, of the depositions taken by defendants were purely investigatory in nature, and as such, should not have been taxed as costs. In support of his argument that the depositions were not necessary for use in this case, Callicrate points out that only approximately 150 pages out of 5,860 pages of deposition transcripts were submitted by defendants. Moreover, although each defendant requested costs for the transcript copies of the eleven depositions taken by Callicrate, no portion of nine of these depositions was ever submitted to the district court. Callicrate therefore argues that the award of costs was excessive, improper, and constituted an abuse of discretion.
We disagree. The costs of taking and transcribing depositions reasonably necessary for litigation are generally awarded to the prevailing party under
Whether materials are necessarily obtained for use in the case is question of fact to be determined by the district court. U.S. Industries, 854 F.2d at 1245. However, “items proposed by winning parties as costs should always be given careful scrutiny.” Id. (quoting Farmer v. Arabian American Oil Co., 379 U.S. 227, 235, 85 S.Ct. 411, 416, 13 L.Ed.2d 248 (1964)). “Necessarily obtained” does not mean that the materials obtained added to the convenience of the parties or made the task of the trial judge easier, and the “most direct evidence of ‘necessity’ is the actual use of materials obtained by counsel or by the court.” U.S. Industries at 1245-46. However, if materials are reasonably necessary for use in the case although not used at trial, the court is nonetheless empowered to find necessity and award costs. Id.
We have recognized that it is ordinarily best to judge reasonable necessity under
with the need of much of the discovery already taken by the parties when, for instance, a dispositive motion is granted by the trial court on purely jurisdictional grounds or on grounds other than the merits. At the time that the parties engage in discovery, however, they may not know whether such a motion will be granted or whether they will be forced to proceed to trial. Hence, caution and proper advocacy may make it incumbent on counsel to prepare for all contingencies which may arise during the course of litigation which include the possibility of trial.
It would therefore be inequitable to essentially penalize a party who happens to prevail on a dispositive motion by not awarding costs associated with that portion of discovery which had no bearing on the dispositive motion, but which appeared otherwise necessary at the time it was taken for proper preparation of the case. We will not, therefore, attempt to employ the benefit of hindsight in determining whether an otherwise taxable item was necessarily obtained for use in the case. Rather, we hold that such a determination must be made based on the particular facts and circumstances at the time the expense was incurred.9
In its Memorandum Order upholding the award of costs, the district court found that the costs assessed pertain to depositions and expenses which were necessary during the course of this litigation. Memorandum Order at 2. Although we would have preferred a more detailed explanation from the district court regarding its decision to allow the costs, Tilton v. Capital Cities/ABC, Inc., 115 F.3d 1471, 1474 (10th Cir.1997), the record sufficiently indicates the district court‘s rea-
We are therefore satisfied that the trial court properly found that the depositions for which costs are requested appeared reasonably necessary for the preparation of, and use in, litigation at the time they were taken. As we have already pointed out, all but one of the depositions initiated by defendants were used to some extent by the parties or the court in connection with the pretrial dispositive motions filed by Callicrate and defendants. The fact that ten depositions were not used by the parties or the court in these pretrial matters does not alter our thinking on this issue. Nine of these unused depositions were taken by Callicrate, and the costs requested for these depositions stem from the fact that defendants incurred expenses to obtain copies of such depositions. Defendants’ request for costs associated with such copying is appropriate given the fact that, at the time the copies were made, it appeared reasonably necessary that such would be used either in preparation for litigation or in
pretrial matters. This is especially true when considering the fact that these unused depositions, taken by Callicrate, were of persons employed by or representing the several defendants. There is no suggestion that defendants requested such copies in order to increase the costs of litigation or to place any burden on Callicrate.
The fortuitous result of dismissal for lack of jurisdiction should not alter the fact that the costs requested here relate to expenses that, when incurred, appeared reasonably necessary in order to adequately prepare defendants’ case for trial and to provide adequate grounds for the filing of pretrial and potentially dispositive motions. Defendants would have been remiss to have merely taken, or requested copies of, depositions directed solely to the jurisdictional issue or to Callicrate‘s motions for partial summary judgment. Given the nature of federal litigation, it was incumbent on defendants to fully prepare their case on the merits, even if dismissal on jurisdictional grounds seemed likely.
Additionally, it is undisputed that the depositions were taken and the copies were made prior to the parties’ submission of their dispositive motions and briefs, and certainly prior to the district court‘s dismissal of the case on jurisdictional grounds, at a time when the parties were otherwise preparing for trial in the event the motions were denied. The fact that much of the product of discovery was rendered unnecessary for use in the district court following the dismissal is immaterial.
III
We feel differently with respect to the award of costs of $9,735.93 in favor of the defendant Co-Op (Grinnell) since, when the costs ruling was made below, Callicrate‘s state court suit, in which Co-Op was made a party, had been commenced where the costs matter could be resolved. We turn now to our consideration of Callicrate‘s appeal challenging that cost award.
Subsequent to the July 31, 1995, dismissal of the federal court action below without prejudice due to lack of diversity jurisdiction, on September 11, 1995, plaintiff Callicrate refiled the action in the District Court of Ford County, Kansas. Memorandum Order at 1; Aplt.App., Section 1A at 550. That state court action asserted Callicrate‘s claims against all defendants except Farmland Industries. As explained above, we are upholding the cost award in favor of Farmland made by the federal district court. We are persuaded, however, that we should vacate the cost award of $9,735.93 in favor of Co-Op (Grinnell) because the controversy between Callicrate and Co-Op is in active litigation in the state court, and we are advised of no resolution of that phase of the controversy. As earlier stated, after argument before us
on August 18, 1997, Callicrate and Thomas notified us of a settlement of their portion of the feed supplement controversy.
Since the merits of the controversy between Callicrate and Co-Op (Grinnell) is undecided, the determination below that Co-Op should recover costs incurred respecting the merits of the feed supplement controversy is speculative and premature. Recovery of costs for the depositions and expenses of Co-Op in meeting the merits of Callicrate‘s claims may be sought in the state court if Co-Op prevails there. Edward W. Gillen Co., 166 F.R.D. at 28. Under Kansas law the prevailing party will be entitled to an award of its costs. See
We, therefore, vacate the entire award of costs in favor of Co-Op (Grinnell) and remand that claim for costs to the federal district court. There the court should determine, after any proceedings it deems necessary, the portion of costs properly recoverable by Co-Op that were directed to obtaining the dismissal of the action for lack of diversity jurisdiction. That portion of the costs the district judge on remand may award, in his discretion, under
This disposition will avoid the possibility of double or overlapping recovery of costs for preparations on the merits of the case by a speculative federal court costs award.
IV
Accordingly, we AFFIRM the award of costs made in the Memorandum Order of the district court in favor of Farmland Industries, Inc. in the amount of $8,146 and appealed by Callicrate in No. 96-3075.12
Our disposition made above vacating the costs award in favor of Co-Op (Grinnell) moots the cross-appeal of Co-Op in No. 96-3101 challenging the stay entered by the district judge of the enforcement of the costs award in favor of Co-Op. No. 96-3101 is accordingly DISMISSED as moot.
The costs award of $9,735.93 in favor of Co-Op (Grinnell) is VACATED and REMANDED. Insofar as that costs award is found on remand to pertain to discovery and preparations below respecting the merits of the feed supplement controversy, the claim as to that portion of the costs claim will be dismissed by the federal district judge, without prejudice. This disposition will permit the District Court of Ford County, Kansas, to consider which of such costs, if any, should be allowed to Co-Op (Grinnell) if it is the prevailing party under
costs that were directed to obtaining the dismissal for lack of diversity jurisdiction, the judge in his discretion may award those costs to Co-Op (Grinnell).
In light of the settlement between plaintiff Callicrate and Thomas, of which we are advised, Callicrate‘s appeal in No. 96-3075 as to costs awarded to Thomas, and Thomas’ cross-appeal in No. 96-3100 challenging the stay, are DISMISSED as moot.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Cynthia M. STONER, Defendant-Appellee.
No. 94-6377.
United States Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit.
April 7, 1998.
Before SEYMOUR, Chief Judge and PORFILIO, ANDERSON, TACHA, BALDOCK, BRORBY, EBEL, KELLY, HENRY, BRISCOE, LUCERO and MURPHY, Circuit Judges.
ORDER
PER CURIAM.
We granted rehearing en banc in this case on the question:
For statute of limitations purposes, must an indictment charging a conspiracy under
18 U.S.C. § 371 allege at least one specific overt act occurring within the limitations period established by18 U.S.C. § 3282 ?
Because we are evenly divided, we affirm the district court‘s judgment on this issue.
