Favorable termination and lack of probable cause are two distinct elements of a malicious prosecution case. Lack of probable cause is determined to claim by claim, so that a malicious prosecution action may proceed if one of several claims in the underlying action was prosecuted without probable cause. But favorable termination is determined by the judgment as a whole, not on a claim-by-claim basis. So if the judgment in the underlying action was in favor of the malicious prosecution defendant on even one claim, the plaintiff in the malicious prosecution action cannot establish favorable termination and his action is properly dismissed, as in this case on summary judgment.
California Court of Appeal, Fourth District, Division One (Dato, J.); January 31, 2018; 2018 WL 636126.