Task: songer_method

What follows is an opinion from a United States Court of Appeals. Your task is to determine the nature of the proceeding in the court of appeals for the case, that is, the legal history of the case, indicating whether there had been prior appellate court proceeding on the same case prior to the decision currently coded. Assume that the case had been decided by the panel for the first time if there was no indication to the contrary in the opinion. The opinion usually, but not always, explicitly indicates when a decision was made "en banc" (though the spelling of "en banc" varies). However, if more than 3 judges were listed as participating in the decision, code the decision as enbanc even if there was no explicit description of the proceeding as en banc.

SETH, Chief Judge.
The plaintiff had been assigned a coal lease issued to a predecessor in January 1935. The Bureau of Land Management sought to adjust the lease terms on a date about two and one-half years after its anniversary date. The anniversary dates for these purposes are the end of each twenty-year period following the date of the lease. The lease expressly gives the Department the right to adjust the terms, conditions, and royalties “at the end” of each twenty-year period. The plaintiff is mining coal on the lease.
The Interior Board of Land Appeals upheld the adjustment made by the Bureau of Land Management and the plaintiff filed this action in the trial court for review of the administrative action. The trial court on cross motions for summary judgment held that the adjustment came too late and was beyond the statutory authority of the Department. The Government has appealed.
Under the lease terms the plaintiff’s lease was subject to readjustment on January 4, 1975, but it received no notice that readjustment would be made and no adjustment was then made. As mentioned, the Department did not give notice nor seek to readjust the lease terms until August of 1977.
This case was consolidated with and presents the identical questions considered by this court in Rosebud Coal Sales Co. v. Cecil D. Andrus, Secretary of Interior, 667 F.2d 949 (10th Cir.). It concerns the same statute, regulations, and administrative action there taken. The lease terms are the same and the leases were issued pursuant to the same statutory authority. The Rosebud opinion determines this appeal and it need not be repeated here.
We must conclude that the Department acted beyond its statutory authority in attempting to readjust plaintiff’s lease some two and one-half years after the anniversary date, and also in seeking to apply a retroactive regulation to accomplish such readjustment.
AFFIRMED.

Question: What is the nature of the proceeding in the court of appeals for this case?
A. decided by panel for first time (no indication of re-hearing or remand)
B. decided by panel after re-hearing (second time this case has been heard by this same panel)
C. decided by panel after remand from Supreme Court
D. decided by court en banc, after single panel decision
E. decided by court en banc, after multiple panel decisions
F. decided by court en banc, no prior panel decisions
G. decided by panel after remand to lower court
H. other
I. not ascertained
Answer:

Answer: A