Legal Question in Business Law in California

It depends what happened in relation to the accusation. Were you held for an appreciable length of time, did you have to post bail, did you have to pay a lawyer to deal with it, etc.? Did you receive a parking ticket because of the delay? Did they tell your friends that you are a thief? Was it published in the newspapers or on the Internet?

If you're out-of-pocket money, suffered emotional distress because of it, and your reputation for honesty and trustworthiness in the eyes of others was diminished, then there might be grounds for a lawsuit.

There is a civil lawsuit for what is called "malicious prosecution." But whether or not you have a case depends on the facts, including why charges were brought, how they were resolved, and whether the people who requested your prosecution have any defenses.

I don't disagree with Mr. Cohen at all, but I'd like to go a step further with your question.

Whenever a lawyer is asked a question in the generic format, "Can I sue X for ABC?" the lawyer is likely to mentally break the question down into four sub-questions, as follows:

(1) Could I draft, file and serve a lawsuit for my client's alleged harm without violating any laws, ethical rules or being laughed out of town by the defense lawyer and the judge?

(2) If I can and do prepare, file, serve and prosecute the lawsuit, are we likely to win?

(3) If we win, will the judge or jury award my client sufficient damages to make the lawsuit worth while? (There's no point in incurring $10,000 in fees and costs to get a judgment for $5,000.)

(4) If we win a money judgment, will we be able to collect? (Just because the judge or jury awards you $25,000 in damages doesn't assure you'll ever put a penny of it in your pockets. Collecting judgments can range from very easy to completely impossible.

In your case, you MAY have one or more "causes of action" (i.e., legally-recognized grounds for asking for damages) such as, possibly, slander, libel, negligent infliction of emotional distress, and perhaps others depending upon the facts. So, you'd pass Question #1, in that there's probably a basis for a lawsuit. Probably.

As to #2, the probability of winning, you can expect the store (or whomever) to put up a pretty strong defense rather than settle out of court. This isn't for sure, of course, but likely. There are potential defenses including the store's detectives or other employee's right to act upon reasonable suspicion that someone is shoplifting, for the store's protection. However, depending upon the facts, the defenses chosen, credibility of witnesses and a bunch of other factors, you might prevail and get a judgment in your favor. No guarantee!

Now, #3 is the real problem. What harm did you suffer, and what will the judgment be for? In most cases, someone who suffers mild to moderate harassment at the hands of a store cop is not going to be greatly injured, financially, by the incident. Sure, if you were a princess or movie star, being hassled by a store could create a very pulic flap and lots of negative publicity, which might affect your career. But how does an average person show that 15 minutes of interrogation (for example) in a store's security office results in substantial compensible harm to them? The judge or jury is unlikely to award you greater money damages than you can show is needed to compensate you for financial harm you suffered.

Sure, I don't know what happened or who you are -- but there is substantial doubt in my mind that your damages award is likely to exceed your costs to take this to trial.

Finally, as to #4, unlike a suit against an individual, a successful suit against a pretty big store, especially a chain store, is pretty likely to be collectible......unless, of course, it just happens to be on the verge of bankruptcy. So, maybe little to worry about in collecting your judgment. However, the problems mentioned in #2 and #3 above still make the economic wisdom of a lawsuit very dubious.......without more information, at least.