When the court fails to assess costs upon disposition of an action, the clerk shall notify the judicial officer of such failure. If the court does not, within ten days of such notification, make an assessment of costs, the clerk shall enter judgment for costs against the party initiating the action.
Rule 1.960.Taxation of costs
Division IX: Trial and Judgment · Last amended September 1, 2003 · Last verified July 15, 2026
In one sentenceRule 1.960 requires the clerk to flag a case where the court failed to assess costs at disposition, and if the court still does not act within 10 days, the clerk enters judgment for costs against the party who started the case.
Full Text of Rule 1.960
Plain-English Summary
Costs sometimes get overlooked when a case wraps up. Rule 1.960 gives the clerk a backstop role for exactly that situation: when the court fails to assess costs upon disposition of an action, the clerk must notify the judicial officer of that failure.
From there, the court has 10 days from the notification to make the assessment. If it does not act within that window, the clerk steps in and enters judgment for costs against the party who initiated the action — a default assignment that keeps costs from disappearing because no one addressed them at the time.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens if the judge forgets to rule on costs when the case ends?
Rule 1.960 requires the clerk to notify the judicial officer of that failure.
How long does the court have to assess costs after that notification?
Ten days from the date of the clerk's notification.
What if the court still has not assessed costs after those 10 days?
The clerk enters judgment for costs against the party who initiated the action.
Who bears the costs by default under this rule?
The party who initiated the action — the rule assigns costs against that party when the court never made its own assessment.
Is this the only way costs get taxed in an Iowa civil case?
No. Rule 1.960 is a fallback that applies only when the court fails to assess costs on disposition; it is not the general procedure for taxing costs.
Source & verification. Rule text and the Comment are
reproduced verbatim from the Iowa Rules of Civil Procedure, adopted by the
Iowa Supreme Court. Last verified July 15, 2026.
· Official source
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