Chapman v Cole

(2006) 15 VR 150; [2006] VSCA 70

Victorian Court of Appeal

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For Australian Law.

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Interrogate

Catchwords

1. Tort
2. › Malicious prosecution
3. › Absence of reasonable and probable cause
4. › Malice
5. › Proof by inference
6. › Whether inference must be 'only inference reasonably open'
1. Evidence
2. › Standard of proof
3. › Civil proceedings
4. › Drawing of inferences
5. › Whether criminal standard of proof applies to inferences in civil trial
6. › Balance of probabilities
1. Practice and Procedure
2. › Trial
3. › Jury directions
4. › Misdirection on standard of proof for inferences
5. › Whether proviso applicable

Quick Take

In a civil trial, the test for drawing an inference is whether the inference is more probable than not on the balance of probabilities. It is an error to direct a jury that an inference must be 'the only inference reasonably open' or that a conclusion must 'necessarily follow' from accepted facts — those formulations reflect the criminal standard and are not applicable to civil proceedings. Jury directions on inferences must make clear that the balance of probabilities applies to both underlying facts and the inferences drawn from them.