Vector loses bid for costs

Vector has lost its bid to make Stuff Ltd pay costs over legal action that the electricity lines company brought against the publisher and owner of Stuff. The argument over a $11,150 legal bill centred on whether it was legal action taken by Vector that persuaded Stuff to delete personal information it had obtained as a result of a Vector data breach, or whether Stuff had – as the publisher claimed – deleted the data because it had finished its story on the breach. Stuff argued that Vector’s proceedings were unnecessary. The High Court at Auckland found in Stuff’s favour, ruling that costs should ‘‘lie where they fall’’.