Court Opinion

ID: 9645923
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 21:40:30.055286+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:11:33.031572
License: Public Domain

KOCH, Judge,
concurring.
I concur with the majority’s opinion only insofar as it pertains to the existence of probable cause.
In order to succeed in a malicious prosecution action, the plaintiff must prove that the defendant lacked probable cause when it initiated the criminal prosecution against the plaintiff. Kinnard v. Frierson, 190 Tenn. 304, 306, 229 S.W.2d 348, 349 (1950). Based upon my independent evaluation of the proof, I have determined that reasonable minds could only conclude that the defendants had a good faith belief that the plaintiff had stolen their used cooking fat when they initiated the criminal prosecution against him.
Having failed to prove the lack of probable cause, the plaintiff has failed to prove all the elements of his case. It follows that the trial court’s decision to grant the defendants’ motion for directed verdict was correct.