Staffpro, Inc. v. Elite Show Services, Inc.
Opinion
Opinion
Irion, J.
A plaintiff in a malicious prosecution action must demonstrate that the litigation alleged to have been maliciously prosecuted was pursued to a legal termination in the plaintiff’s favor. The primary issue in this appeal is whether this “favorable termination” element can be established where a plaintiff prevailed on some, but not all, of the causes of action asserted against it in the complaint in the underlying litigation. We conclude that in such circumstances, a plaintiff cannot establish favorable termination and is consequently precluded from maintaining a subsequent malicious prosecution action.
FACTS
In the instant malicious prosecution action, StaffPro, Inc. contends that it was the victim of a meritless civil action, maliciously prosecuted by Elite Show Services, Inc. The relevant facts are as follows:
StaffPro and Elite are competitors in the event-staffing industry. In May 2001, Elite filed suit against StafiPro and two other unrelated defendants in superior court. Elite’s complaint (the Complaint) alleged that StafiPro was engaging in unlawful practices designed to “artificially lower [StafiPro’s] cost of labor and to diminish or destroy competition for…