Malicious Prosecution

Malicious prosecution denotes the wrongful initiation of criminal proceedings. It is prosecution against a person without any likely cause that causes damages. It is a kind of tort, and the victim has the right that he even can sue the police authorities for any such wrong done by them.

Liability arising out of malicious prosecution relies on the freedom to take any action, and the other is the necessity to look into the false accusations against the person. Criminal prosecuting attorneys and judges are exempted from malicious prosecution by the doctrine of prosecutorial immunity and judicial immunity.

Malicious Prosecution meaning

Suppose a person under the influence of an ill or improper motive institutes a judicial proceeding against another person without likely cause to sustain it. In that case, it can be defined as malicious prosecution as observed by the court during the case of West Bengal State Electricity Board versus Dilip Kumar Ray. 

It is the benevolent intention of unsuccessful criminal or bankruptcy or liquidation proceedings against another without likely cause. Malicious prosecution is likely to occur when one party knowingly and intentionally initiates any baseless litigation against the other person.

Check out the UPSC Notes

Essential elements of malicious prosecution

To prove malicious prosecution in a suit, the plaintiff must prove-

Prosecution by the defendant

It must be noted that any departmental enquiries against the plaintiff conducted by disciplinary authorities will not be considered prosecution. Prosecution refers to judicial proceedings through appeals.

Absence of reasonable and probable cause

The plaintiff’s responsibility is to prove to the court that he was prosecuted without reasonable cause by the defendants with malicious intent.

Even if the reasonable, likely and probable motive exists, it is of no value if the prosecutor prosecutes the case in ignorance. It must be noted that the accused getting acquitted or the case getting dismissed should not be proof of the absence of reasonable and probable cause.

 Suppose a person initiates a proceeding with multiple charges, where the probable cause may be present for some of the charges and absent for some. In such cases, the probable motive isn’t always present, and hence his legal responsibility for malicious prosecution is complete. A person who files a suit for malicious prosecution has to prove that the defendant who has filed the case has done it without any likely cause.

The malicious act of the defendant 

Malice isn’t always only a feeling of ill will or a spirit of vengeance in the direction of the plaintiff; however, it may be to behave with any mistaken cause which motivates the prosecutor to benefit from the man or woman.

It isn’t always crucial that the defendant appear maliciously proper from the prosecution launched. If the prosecutor is initially harmless but becomes malicious, a motion for malicious prosecution can lie. If the pendency of crook prosecution, the defendant receives fantastic know-how of the accused’s innocence, the continuance of the trial is malicious from that moment onwards.

Malice may be inferred upon evidence of the absence of sincere perception inside the accusation and consequent need of reasonable and probable cause for instituting the prosecution complaint.

Visit to know more about UPSC Exam Pattern

Proceedings are terminated in favour of the plaintiff

Termination here refers to the non-existence of judicial determination of the defendant’s guilt. 

Malice is no longer defined just as a feeling of enmity, spite, or a spirit of vengeance against the plaintiff. Malice may also be any wrongful motivation that may help the prosecutor gain personal collateral. 

No action may be added while the prosecution or the court cases are pending. It is a rule of law that nobody will be allowed to allege a still-pending suit miles unjust.

Damage caused to the plaintiff as a result of prosecution: 

The plaintiff can claim damages on the following three counts:-

• Damage to the plaintiff’s reputation,
• Damage to the plaintiff’s person,
• Damage to the plaintiff’s property.

Adversarial civil proceeding:

Essentials of malicious civil proceedings are

• Malice must be proved.
• The plaintiff must prove that such civil proceedings have interrupted his liberty and have affected his reputation.

Also read about Tips for UPSC Preparation

Remedies for malicious prosecution

1. The plaintiff may claim compensation or punitive damages.

2. Public law remedy

The Malicious Prosecution infringes the fundamental rights of the accused person. The charged can invoke writ jurisdiction below article and then achieve from the writ courts the comfort of providing compensation to the victim who suffered physical, intellectual, and social damage.

Conclusion

It is stated that the adversarial doings are that lawsuits can be initiated on spiteful grounds. 

Multiple factors point to malicious prosecution, such as the absence of a reasonable motive prosecution by the defendant against whom allegations of malicious intent are filed. In several cases, complaints are terminated, which may favour the plaintiff inside the court. The plaintiff is suffering or undertaking damages because of the prosecution. These are vital to the plaintiff to show in a suit for damages for malicious prosecution to be fulfilled. 

Even though mere carelessness isn’t in keeping with the evidence of malice, unreasonable conduct like haste, recklessness or failure to make enquiries would be some evidence. Malicious prosecution is the hostile organisation of unsuccessful crooks or bankruptcy or liquidation court cases in opposition to another without affordable or possible purpose.

However, based on the records and occasions, the courtroom decides whether the suit was filed with malicious intent or not.