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Simple English definitions for legal terms
court costs
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A quick definition of court costs:
Court costs are fees that people have to pay when they use a court. These fees include things like the cost of filing papers, serving papers to people, paying for a court reporter to write down what people say, and paying for copies of papers. Sometimes, the winning side in a case can make the losing side pay for these costs. In criminal cases, the person who is found guilty has to pay court costs to help the government pay for the case. Court costs can be used to fund programs that help victims of crimes or people who can't afford a lawyer.
A more thorough explanation:
Court costs are fees that are paid for the use of a court. They are seen in both civil and criminal courts of all levels. Court costs usually include:
- The initial filing fee
- Fees for serving the summons, complaint, and subpoenas
- Fees to pay for the transcription by a court reporter of depositions or in-court testimony
- The cost of photocopying court papers and exhibits
- Providing daily small stipends to jurors
- Paying the court clerk and the court marshal
For example, in Texas, criminals convicted of certain crimes must pay a court cost of $250 to cover the cost of DNA recording.
In the civil context, court costs are normally awarded to the prevailing party, meaning that the ‘losing’ party must cover them. The prevailing party usually must create, substantiate, and present an itemized list of their court costs that are recoverable in the jurisdiction. Court costs can be significant, and plaintiff counsel and defense counsel may therefore spend much time disputing which costs should be included.
In the criminal law, court costs are not meant to be punitive in nature, but rather to facilitate the government’s partial recovery of its expenditures in carrying out a criminal case. The convicted criminal pays the court costs because the governmental expenditure only exists because of their illegal activity.
Overall, court costs are the fees that are paid for the use of a court and can include a variety of expenses. They are awarded to the prevailing party in civil cases and are paid by convicted criminals in criminal cases.