countersuit

noun

coun·​ter·​suit ˈkau̇n-tər-ˌsüt 

variants or less commonly counter-suit

plural countersuits also counter-suits

: an opposing lawsuit

especially : a claim asserted by an opposing party in a lawsuit (such as a defendant) against the party bringing the original lawsuit (such as a plaintiff) : counterclaim

decided to file a countersuit against her accuser

The current appeal results from a patent infringement suit and countersuit between Apple Inc. ("Apple") and Samsung Electronics Co …

—Apple, Inc. v. Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., 816 F. 3d 788 (2016)

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

Everything to Know About Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's Vineyard, Château Miraval In September 2022, Jolie's former company fired back with its own countersuit against her ex over the wine business. —Staff Author, Peoplemag, 2 June 2023

For her countersuit, Depp was ordered to pay Heard $2 million. —Emlyn Travis And Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 17 May 2023

That prompted Disney’s federal lawsuit and a countersuit by Florida. —Chris Isidore, CNN, 11 May 2023

Paltrow, 50, had filed a countersuit seeking $1, which the 76-year-old Sanderson must now pay, according to the ruling. —Jonah Valdez, Los Angeles Times, 2 May 2023

The board unanimously passed the motion to file a countersuit on Monday. —Jack Birle, Washington Examiner, 1 May 2023

After a months-long court battle, which included a countersuit by Musk, Musk and Twitter agreed to proceed with the deal in October, which was finalized later that month for $44 billion. —Will Oremus, Washington Post, 29 Apr. 2023

In a 29-page ruling dated March 30, the judge threw out some of Sabatini’s and Knouse’s allegations contained in the litigation, while leaving enough of the suit and countersuit intact for the case to move forward. —Mark Arsenault, BostonGlobe.com, 5 Apr. 2023

Paltrow launched a countersuit in February 2019 alleging that Sanderson caused the accident and is now attempting to capitalize on her fame. —Frederick Dreier, Outside Online, 24 Mar. 2023

See More

Word History

First Known Use

1846, in the meaning defined above