Deborah Curling, a former production assistant, sued Barker, CBS and production company FremantleMedia North America in October, claiming she faced retaliation after testifying against Barker in another wrongful termination lawsuit.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Malcolm H. Mackey tentatively dismissed several claims against Barker on Wednesday, saying he could not be sued for wrongful termination because he was not her employer.

Curling's attorney, Nick Alden, can amend the complaint to try to prove that Barker inflicted emotional distress, but Mackey dismissed that allegation for now.

Mackey also dismissed several claims lodged by Curling against FremantleMedia, but will allow Alden another chance to argue they should be included.

Attorneys for CBS and FremantleMedia declined to comment after the hearing.