She said, he said, she said: Counterclaim isn’t retaliation

A federal court has refused to entertain overturning a 5th Circuit Court of Appeals decision that says filing a counterclaim to a lawsuit or even a separate lawsuit against an employee isn’t the basis for a retaliation claim.

That’s because all entities have the right to litigate claims.

Recent case: Corina sued her former employer, complaining about sexual harassment at work.

The alleged harasser then filed a separate defamation claim against Corina, presumably based on challenging her account of the harassment.

Then Corina asked the court to add a retaliation claim to her lawsuit.

The court refused, pointing out that allowing such a claim would mean overturning an earlier decision that clearly allows employers and others to file counterclaims as a defense. (Madrigal v. Kleberg County, et al., No. 2:15-CV-345, SD TX, 2016)