Counterclaim

A counterclaim is filed by a defendant in a civil proceeding against the plaintiff or against the plaintiff and other people. A counterclaim may be an attempt to offset or reduce the damages alleged by the plaintiff in its original claim against the defendant or it may be a different claim.

Counterclaims are either permissive or compulsory. If the counterclaim is permissive, it may be brought but no rights are waived if it is not. If the counterclaim is mandatory, it must be brought in the current action or it will be waived. Under the U.S. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a counterclaim is compulsory if it involves only the parties currently part of the suit, and arises from the same transaction the original suit is based on.

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