as in lawsuits
a court case brought against the plaintiff of another court case by the defendant
The defendant filed a counterclaim for his own injuries, claiming that he only rear-ended the plaintiff because she had stopped too fast.
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Recent Examples of counterclaims
And in March, van Keulen dismissed one of the Mountain West’s counterclaims against the Pac-12 but ruled two others could proceed to trial, most notably the tortious interference claims.
—
Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 May 2026
Nathan, Abel, and Wayfarer filed counterclaims against Jones.
—Victoria Bekiempis, Vulture, 14 May 2026
Their arguments are now moving forward as counterclaims under the umbrella of the QBE lawsuit.
—Tess Riski
april 14, Miami Herald, 14 Apr. 2026
Perhaps more importantly, CAA’s counterclaims accusing the agents of stealing trade secrets on their way out and starting a rival agency that masquerades as a management firm were rejected.
—Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 8 Apr. 2026
The other focused on counterclaims.
—Jon Wilner, Mercury News, 4 Apr. 2026
Baldoni, who also directed the film, filed counterclaims against Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, which Liman dismissed in June.
—Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News, 3 Apr. 2026
But his previously unreported warning was the first of a torrent of claims and counterclaims shared by conservative commentators after Kirk’s death.
—Ben Smith, semafor.com, 31 Mar. 2026
Nelson has since filed copyright counterclaims of her own, alleging a third party connected to Taylor posted her images without permission.
—Jessica Lynch, Billboard, 31 Mar. 2026
Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 May 2026
Nathan, Abel, and Wayfarer filed counterclaims against Jones.
—Victoria Bekiempis, Vulture, 14 May 2026
Their arguments are now moving forward as counterclaims under the umbrella of the QBE lawsuit.
—Tess Riski
april 14, Miami Herald, 14 Apr. 2026
Perhaps more importantly, CAA’s counterclaims accusing the agents of stealing trade secrets on their way out and starting a rival agency that masquerades as a management firm were rejected.
—Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 8 Apr. 2026
The other focused on counterclaims.
—Jon Wilner, Mercury News, 4 Apr. 2026
Baldoni, who also directed the film, filed counterclaims against Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, which Liman dismissed in June.
—Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News, 3 Apr. 2026
But his previously unreported warning was the first of a torrent of claims and counterclaims shared by conservative commentators after Kirk’s death.
—Ben Smith, semafor.com, 31 Mar. 2026
Nelson has since filed copyright counterclaims of her own, alleging a third party connected to Taylor posted her images without permission.
—Jessica Lynch, Billboard, 31 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for counterclaims
Noun
-
Trump and his allies filed more than 60 lawsuits challenging the results and failed to overturn a single state's outcome.—
Josh Meyer,
USA Today,
7 June 2026
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The dismissal was granted Friday under Washington’s Anti-SLAPP laws, which are designed to prevent meritless lawsuits intended to silence opposing points of view on matters of public interest.—
Melissa Goldin,
Los Angeles Times,
7 June 2026
Noun
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More complaints, from at home and abroad, will likely come.—
Kyle Feldscher,
CNN Money,
11 June 2026
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Please feel welcome to direct your thoughts and complaints to the comments section.—
Liam Twomey,
New York Times,
11 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Counterclaims.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/counterclaims. Accessed 11 Jun. 2026.
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