Prior Proceeding Forming Basis of Malicious Prosecution Claim Must Entirely Be Terminated in Plaintiff’s Favor
There is a cause of action for malicious prosecution. This cause of action is discussed here.
Of importance, the First District Court of Appeals in Gacek v. Avalon Dunes Condominium Owners Association, Inc., 51 Fla.L.Weekly D477b (Fla. 1st DCA 2026), affirmed that in order to pursue a malicious prosecution claim, the claiming party must prove that the prior proceeding forming the basis of the malicious prosecution claim ENTIRELY terminated in their favor:
According to the Florida Supreme Court, one of the required elements of a claim for malicious prosecution is that the underlying “proceeding” must have terminated “in favor of the present plaintiff.” In context, the word “proceeding” refers to the entire underlying action or lawsuit — not merely one cause of action within it.
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The Florida Supreme Court long ago explained that “[t]he gist of the [malicious prosecution] action is that [a] plaintiff has been improperly made the subject of legal process resulting in his damage.” It would be an odd result if a plaintiff could expand the legal process in the underlying action and then recover damages suffered from that process, without prevailing in its entirety.
Gacek, supra (internal citations omitted)
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