(a) Lawyer to Bear Costs of Publication
In a case involving the imposition of discipline consisting of disbarment, suspension, public probation, or public reprimand with general publication, or the transfer of a lawyer to disability inactive status, notice shall be published in the official Bar publication and in a newspaper of general circulation in each judicial circuit of the State of Alabama in which the disciplined or disabled lawyer or lawyer maintained an office for the practice of law.

The costs of publishing the newspaper notice shall be assessed against the disciplined or disabled lawyer. In a case involving the imposition of a reprimand, without general publication, notice of such reprimand will be published only in the official Bar publication.

(b) Assessment of Research Fee and Recovery of Costs
The cost of production, when photocopying or other document production is performed by the Alabama State Bar for purposes of these Rules, shall be a commercially reasonable rate, not to exceed $1.00 per page. In addition to reproduction charges, the Bar may charge a reasonable fee incident to a request to review disciplinary records or for research into the records of disciplinary proceedings and indentification of documents to be produced. These costs shall include a minimum research fee of $25.00 per request in addition to the costs of reproduction.

(c) Production of Voluminous Documents
When the Bar is requested to reproduce documents that are voluminous or is requested to produce transcripts in its possession, the Bar may decline to reproduce the documents and shall inform the person requesting the documents of the following options:
(1) Purchase the transcripts from the court reporter’s service that produced them;
(2) Purchase the document from the third party from whom the Bar received them; or
(3) Designate a commercial photocopy service to whom the Bar shall deliver the original documents to be copied, at the requesting party’s expense, provided the photocopy service agrees to preserve and return the original documents and not to release them to any person without the Bar’s consent.

(d) Taxable Costs
Taxable costs of the proceeding shall include:
(1) Investigative costs, including travel and out-of-pocket expenses;
(2) Court reporter’s fees;
(3) Copy costs;
(4) Telephone charges;
(5) Fees for translation services;
(6) Witness expenses, including mileage, per diem, and actual and necessary expenses; provided, however, that witnesses may be compensated for travel to and from attendance at hearings only, and shall be compensated in the same manner and at the then prevailing rate of compensation as provided for in-state travel for state employees and for mileage for state employees or as otherwise directed by the Board of Bar Commissioners of the Alabama State Bar;
(7) Expenses of a Disciplinary Hearing Officer, members of the Disciplinary Board, members of the Disciplinary Commission, members of the Board of Disciplinary Appeals, and members of the Prediscipline Diversion Board;
(8) Expenses incurred by the Office of General Counsel in the proceedings; and
(9) An administrative fee in the amount of $750 when costs are assessed in favor of the Bar.

(e) Discretion to Award Costs
A Disciplinary Hearing Officer, the Disciplinary Board, the Disciplinary Commission, or the Board of Disciplinary Appeals shall each have discretion to award costs. Absent an abuse of that discretion, such an award shall not be reversed.

“Note from the reporter of decisions: The order amending Rule 33, effective August 1, 2000, is published in that volume of Alabama Reporter that contains Alabama cases from ____So.2d.”

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