VA · jury_instructions
Va. Model Jury Instr. Civ. No. 41.040
Definition of Probable Cause
Probable cause to institute criminal proceedings against the plaintiff existed if the facts and
circumstances known to the defendant and on which he acted were such that a reasonable and
prudent person acting on the same facts and circumstances would have believed the plaintiff guilty
of the crime of which he was suspected.
In determining whether probable cause existed, you shall consider the facts and circumstances
as they appeared to the defendant at the time he instituted the criminal proceedings.
A lack of probable cause may not be inferred from malice.
History
Virginia Model Jury Instructions – Civil, Release 26, April 2026. The unannotated set, posted by the Supreme Court of Virginia at vacourts.gov; the book states that it is made available with the permission of the publisher, Matthew Bender & Company, Inc.
Provenance
- Source
- vacourts.gov
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-11
- Edition
- civ-2026-04-01
- Content hash
4c9661044d2e0cae2bfc014bd887a9e19a85c9a1dcd6effeae2f827547fed627
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