Short answer. Yes, potentially. Article 2219 lists malicious prosecution as a specific ground for moral damages. If the complaint against you was filed without probable cause and out of malice, and it was ultimately dismissed, that experience can support a civil claim for the suffering it caused you.

What the law says

Malicious prosecution

Civil Code, Article 2219 — When Moral Damages May Be Recovered. Read the full provision →

Malicious prosecution is a named ground for moral damages

Article 2219 lists "malicious prosecution" directly as item eight among the situations where moral damages may be recovered. Being dragged through a criminal complaint that had no real factual or legal basis, and that was ultimately dismissed as unfounded, is the kind of harm this provision is meant to address. The law recognizes that defending against a baseless accusation driven by ill will can itself cause real anguish, reputational damage, and financial strain, independent of whatever else the complainant may be liable for.

Dismissal alone is not automatically malicious prosecution

It is important to understand that a case being dismissed does not, by itself, prove malicious prosecution. The complainant is generally allowed to pursue a complaint that turns out to be unsuccessful without automatically becoming liable for it. What the ground actually requires is something more — that the complaint was filed without probable cause and was driven by malice or an improper motive, rather than simply being a claim that did not ultimately succeed.

What you would need to show

To recover moral damages on this ground, you would generally need to establish that the earlier complaint lacked probable cause from the start, that it was terminated in your favor, and that it was pursued with malice rather than an honest, even if mistaken, belief in its merit. You would also need to show the anxiety, humiliation, damage to reputation, or similar suffering you actually experienced from having to defend against the complaint.

Building your case

Because malice and lack of probable cause are central to this ground, gathering evidence of the circumstances surrounding the original complaint matters — anything suggesting the complainant knew the accusation was baseless, had an ulterior motive, or acted out of ill will toward you, alongside a clear record of how the ordeal affected you personally and professionally. The dismissal itself is a useful starting point, but the moral damages claim rests on proving the malicious character of the prosecution, not merely its outcome.

Cases citing this provision

These Supreme Court decisions cite the provision above. We list them so you can read them yourself; the summaries of what each decided are not ours to give.

Related provisions

Note. Statute text quoted on this page is reproduced from the official enactment and is linked to the full provision. The explanation around it is general legal information from Vivas & Nobles Law Office, not legal advice. Whether it applies to your situation depends on facts only a lawyer reviewing them can assess.