Opinion ID: 2820786
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: White Counterclaim Issues

Text: White attached his counterclaim for battery to defendants’ answer to Davis’s initial complaint. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 13(a). Davis filed interrogatories addressing the counterclaim. After a lengthy stay due to state criminal proceedings, Davis filed an amended complaint in February 2013. Defendants’ answer did not replead White’s counterclaim. White nonetheless answered Davis’s interrogatories, Davis moved to compel supplemental responses, the district court granted that motion in part, and White served supplemental responses. At Davis’s July 2013 deposition, defense counsel introduced himself as representing “counterclaim plaintiff Mike White,” and asked Davis if he understood that he was “named as a defendant in a counterclaim.” Davis answered, “Yes.” As trial approached, Davis moved the district court to deem the counterclaim abandoned because it was not included in defendants’ answer to the amended complaint. He appeals the court’s denial of that motion. -9- In our view, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure clearly give a district court discretion to grant or deny a motion to deem a counterclaim abandoned in these circumstances. Rule 15(a)(3) provides that, “[u]nless the court orders otherwise, any required response to an amended pleading must be made within the time remaining to respond to the original pleading or within 14 days after service of the amended pleading, whichever is later” (emphasis added). Rule 15(a)(2) provides that the district court “should freely give leave [to amend] when justice so requires.” Though Rule 13(a)(1) requires that a compulsory counterclaim be stated in “a pleading,” that term was used to clarify that counterclaims could be asserted in pleadings other than “the answer.” See 6 Wright, Miller & Kane, Federal Practice and Procedure § 1401, at 6-7 (3d ed. 2010). Rule 1 requires that the Federal Rules “be construed and administered to secure the just, speedy, and inexpensive determination of every action and proceeding.” Where, as here, plaintiff is given sufficient notice that defendant is continuing to pursue a compulsory counterclaim, and plaintiff would not be unfairly prejudiced if the counterclaim proceeds, an inflexible rule that counterclaims are always abandoned if not repleaded would not serve the interests of justice. See Ground Zero Museum Workshop v. Wilson, 813 F. Supp. 2d 678, 706 (D. Md. 2011). In this case, the district court adopted an equitable approach in determining whether White’s counterclaim should be deemed abandoned, concluding that Davis had lengthy notice White was pursuing the counterclaim, undertook discovery on the counterclaim, and therefore would not be prejudiced by denial of the motion to deem it abandoned. This was the proper approach. There was no abuse of discretion. After the district court dismissed Davis’s federal excessive force claims, Davis moved to dismiss White’s counterclaim on the ground that the district court lacked supplemental jurisdiction because it did not share a “common nucleus of operative fact” with Davis’s remaining federal claim, the substantive due process claim against Beaird. See generally United Mine Workers of Am. v. Gibbs, 383 U.S. 715, 725 (1966); Global NAPs, Inc. v. Verizon New Eng. Inc., 603 F.3d 71, 87-88 (1st Cir. -10- 2010). In the alternative, Davis moved to bifurcate trial of the substantive due process claim and White’s counterclaim. Although Davis appealed the district court’s denial of both motions, he conceded that the issues would be rendered moot if we reversed the district court’s grant of summary judgment to defendants on the Fourth Amendment excessive force claims. The concession was clearly correct. After dismissing the substantive due process claim against Beaird, the district court exercised its discretion to dismiss White’s state law counterclaim without prejudice. See 28 U.S.C. § 1367(c)(3). When we reinstate the court’s original federal jurisdiction by reversing the grant of summary judgment and remanding for further proceedings on the federal excessive force claims, our proper disposition is to vacate the dismissal of the state law counterclaim under § 1367(c)(3) and “leave the question of how to handle the state claim to the District Court on remand.” Int’l Ass’n of Firefighters, Local 2665 v. City of Ferguson, 283 F.3d 969, 976 (8th Cir. 2002).