以上三者是各不相同但卻最容易混淆的法律術(shù)語，目前流行的很多詞典把它們都當(dāng)作一個概念，即“反訴”對待，而事實上三者的含義差別極大。首先是counterclaim和cross claim, 它們的區(qū)別在于前者是指在同一訴訟中針對另一方當(dāng)事人，即被告方對原告方提出的訴訟主張，故其應(yīng)為“反訴”，其也稱為 counteraction、countersuit 或 cross-demand [1]。而后者則是指同一訴訟中的共同方當(dāng)事人，即共同被告或共同原告之間相互所提出的訴訟主張，故其應(yīng)為“共同訴訟人之間的訴訟主張”或 “交叉訴訟主張”而非“反訴”[2]。而cross-action的區(qū)別則在于該術(shù)語是指被告就同一有爭議的訴因?qū)Π讣械脑婊蚬餐桓嫠岢龅牧硪华毩⒃V訟(separate action) [3](此訴訟如在中國應(yīng)當(dāng)另案處理），故其也非“反訴”而應(yīng)是“交叉訴訟”。

[1]“ A defendant's assertion in the main action of a right or claim against the plaintiff. "Cf. Daphne A. Dukelow, The Dictionary of Canadian Law, at p. 226, Thomson Professional Publishing Canada (1991). “A cause of action or claim for relief asserted by a defendant against the plaintiff in a civil case. ”Cf. James E. Clapp，Random House Webster's Dictionary of the Law, at p. 112, Random House (2000).
[2] "cross claim： A claim or cause of action against one or more of the other defendants. For example, in a tort case gainst several people alleged to have harmed the plaintiff jointly, the defendants often assert cross-claims against each other, each claiming a right of contribution (要求對方分擔(dān)損失賠償) from the others. In rare cases, a cross-claim might be asserted by one plaintiff against another in the same case. ”Cf. James E. Clapp, Random House Webster's Dictionary of the Law, at p. 119, Random House (2000).
[3]“An independent suit brought by defendant against plaintiff of co-defendant. ”Cf. The Publisher's Editorial Staff, Black's Law Dictionary, abridged 6th edition, at p. 162, West Publishing Co. (1991).“ An action brought by a defendant in an existing action against a plaintiff or codefendant. " Cf. Linda Picard Wood, J. D.，Merriam Webster's Dictionary of Law, at p. 115, Merriam-Webster，Incorporated (1996 ).