Opinion ID: 1937356
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Counterclaims Were Properly Stricken From the Record

Text: On January 23, 1981, Carl Johnson moved to amend his complaint to substitute his son Walter as the named plaintiff. The purported reason for the amendment was a misnomer on the face of the complaint. Counsel for Carl Johnson maintained that Walter was the owner of the premises and therefore the proper plaintiff. The court also entertained an oral motion by counsel to have Ms. Daniels' counterclaims against Carl Johnson stricken because he was not the proper party-plaintiff. [17] Ms. Daniels opposed the motion to strike the counterclaims. Although not specifically addressing the proper party issue, Ms. Daniels asserted that the counterclaims were permissible under Landlord and Tenant Rule 5(b). [18] The court granted each motion. As its reason for striking the counterclaims, the court concluded that Ms. Daniels was seeking damages that had no relationship to the judgment requested by Carl Johnson. The colloquy between counsel for Ms. Daniels and the court suggests that the court was unwilling to permit counterclaims against the landlord for damages which had allegedly arisen prior to the period for which the landlord claimed unpaid rent. [19] In Hines v. John B. Sharkey Co., supra note 19, this court interpreted Landlord and Tenant Rule 5(b) and held that a tenant may base a counterclaim under Rule 5(b) on housing code violations that predate the period for which the landlord claims rent is due. Id. at 1095. Thus, it was error for the motions court in the present case to strike Daniels' counterclaims for the reasons that the court stated. However, the result was correct. After striking the counterclaims, the court permitted the substitution of Walter Johnson as the named plaintiff. The counterclaims against Carl Johnson could not properly be heard in a suit brought by Walter Johnson, his successor in title. [20] Brown, supra, 364 A.2d at 1173 (possessory action is not a proper proceeding for resolving the rights of third parties). We hold, therefore that the counterclaims against Carl Johnson were properly stricken, albeit for the wrong reason, and thus we do not reverse on that ground. Marinopoliski v. Irish, 445 A.2d 339, 340 (D.C.1982) (citing Helvering v. Gowran, 302 U.S. 238, 58 S.Ct. 154, 82 L.Ed. 224 (1937)); Max Holtzman, Inc. v. K & T Co., 375 A.2d 510, 513 n. 6 (D.C.1977) (citing Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. v. District of Columbia, 316 A.2d 871, 875 (D.C.1974); Wells v. Wynn, 311 A.2d 829 n. 2 (D.C.1973)).