Can a plaintiff bring a claim for malicious prosecution in a civil proceeding?

Malicious prosecution as a cause of action was canvassed fully by Lander J. in Norman v. Soule et al. (1991), 7 C.C.L.T. (2d) 16 (B.C.S.C.). Although he did not decide that a claim for malicious prosecution based on civil proceedings would not be permitted, Lander J. pointed out that such claims were exceedingly rare. This is perhaps because, as a matter of policy, the court does not want to discourage people from bringing actions by exposing them to the risk of being sued for malicious prosecution should their claims be dismissed. In the context of this case, the same policy reasoning would apply to whether the fear of being sued for malicious prosecution should discourage a party from abandoning a claim before trial.