The court may render judgment for costs and attorney fees, or any part thereof, against any party, as the court may consider fair. However, no attorney fees shall be awarded to a petitioner when judgment is granted against the petitioner or the petition is dismissed on the merits.
Art. 4550.Costs and Attorney Fees
Book VII. Special Proceedings · Title VIII. Interdiction and Curatorship of Interdicts · Chapter 1. In General · Last amended 2001 · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 4550 lets the court assess costs and attorney fees against any party in an interdiction proceeding as it considers fair, but bars an attorney-fee award to a petitioner who loses the case or has the petition dismissed on the merits.
Full Text of Art. 4550
Amendment History
Amended by Acts 1981, No. 304, §1; Acts 2000, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 25, §3, eff. 7/1/2001.
Plain-English Summary
Article 4550 gives the court broad discretion over who pays for an interdiction case. Costs and attorney fees, or any part of them, can be assessed against any party the court considers responsible, rather than following a fixed rule that the losing side automatically pays. That flexibility fits the protective, non-adversarial character interdiction cases can take on, where the petitioner may be a concerned family member acting in good faith rather than an opposing litigant in the ordinary sense.
The one fixed limit runs in the defendant's favor: no attorney fees can be awarded to a petitioner when judgment is granted against the petitioner or the petition is dismissed on the merits. A petitioner who fails to prove interdiction is warranted, or whose case is thrown out on the merits, cannot recover fees for having brought it, discouraging petitions filed without an adequate basis while leaving the court free to allocate the rest of the costs as it sees fit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who pays the costs of an interdiction proceeding in Louisiana?
Whichever party the court considers fair; Article 4550 does not fix costs to follow the outcome automatically.
Can a petitioner who loses an interdiction case be awarded attorney fees?
No. Article 4550 bars an attorney-fee award to a petitioner when judgment goes against them or the petition is dismissed on the merits.
Does the losing party in an interdiction case always have to pay the other side's costs?
Not automatically. The court has discretion to assess costs and fees against any party as it considers fair, subject to the limit on fee awards to an unsuccessful petitioner.
Source & verification. Article text is reproduced verbatim from
the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure (legis.la.gov). Enacted by the Louisiana Legislature.
Last verified July 30, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: Article 4550 Louisianainterdiction costs and feesattorney fees interdiction proceeding Louisianawho pays for interdiction case