Compass has asked a federal judge to dismiss the counterclaims brought against it by the Northwest Multiple Listing Service (NWMLS), arguing the listing service has not shown any concrete injury to support its claims as Compass simultaneously sues the MLS for alleged “predatory and exclusionary” rules around private listings.
In the filing, Compass defended its marketing strategies and focus on private listings, which NWMLS previously argued harms consumers and additionally de-valued its services.
“NWMLS offers no substantiating allegations to make its claims of ‘material misrepresentations’ plausible,” Compass wrote.
In response to the motion, an NWMLS spokesperson noted that it “is yet another tactical attempt to evade accountability for practices that undermine the real estate ecosystem.”
“NWMLS will continue protecting the integrity of the shared market data that brokers, appraisers, and consumers rely on daily,” they continued. “Withholding listings and distorting critical marketplace metrics impedes true price discovery, creates a fractured system of shadow inventory, deprives buyers of equal access and deceives both buyers and sellers about the value of a home. We remain entirely confident in our pro-consumer position and will continue to vigorously defend a fair, open, and transparent marketplace.”
Compass first sued NWMLS on April 25, 2025, alleging the MLS changed its rules to prevent private listings as part of an alleged conspiracy. Just before the lawsuit was filed, NWMLS temporarily suspended Compass’s access to its data feed.
In March of this year, Judge Jamal Whitehead denied NWMLS’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit, ruling that Compass had plausibly alleged that the listing service’s rules stifle competition, harm homesellers and potentially violate both federal and Washington state antitrust law. NWMLS then responded with counterclaims, which prompted the current motion.
In the filing, Compass also argues NWMLS lacks standing to sue because it cannot point to a concrete injury of its own and instead asserts harm to consumers and the public. Compass notes that NWMLS is a private corporation owned by brokerages, not a consumer organization.
Compass also challenges NWMLS’s theory that 3PM (Compass’s three-phase marketing, including a private listing phase) “severely degraded” the value of its database. NWMLS had claimed that Compass’s Private Exclusive listings that were later added to the MLS did not include price drops or days on market data, which also misled consumers who trusted the platform.
By NWMLS’s own cited sources, the brief states, only seven properties were marketed as Private Exclusives before the practice was halted, against a database that held more than 14,000 active listings at the time. Compass calculates that figure as a fraction of 1% of listings, calling it “less than de minimis.”
NWMLS said it incurred costs investigating and enforcing its rules against Compass, the brief argues any such injury was “self-inflicted,” because NWMLS demanded that Compass enter the same listings it now says were deceptive.
Compass further contends the fraud and consumer protection claims fail to identify any specific false statement, deceived buyer or misleading listing and that its “Private Exclusive” and “Compass Coming Soon” labels are accurate. It points to NWMLS’s own website terms, which state that reliance on listing information is “at your own risk.”
The filing also addresses the new Washington private listing law, which takes effect June 11, that will restrict certain private marketing practices in the state. In the filing, Compass claims that 3PM “fully complies with this new law which, contrary to NWMLS’s suggestion, neither entitles NWMLS to listings nor codifies its rules. At any rate, the statute is not yet in effect and is irrelevant to their claims for past damages.”
Going further, Compass pointed to “carveouts” in the relevant laws that make allowance for “reasonable business practices.”
“3PM offers homeowners a choice allowed by the National Association of Realtors®. NWMLS does not plausibly claim this nearly ubiquitous business practice is unreasonable,” the filing states.
Editor’s note: This story was updated June 3 at 9:25 a.m. ET to include a statement from NWMLS.
