Task: songer_appel1_1_2

What follows is an opinion from a United States Court of Appeals.
Intervenors who participated as parties at the courts of appeals should be counted as either appellants or respondents when it can be determined whose position they supported. For example, if there were two plaintiffs who lost in district court, appealed, and were joined by four intervenors who also asked the court of appeals to reverse the district court, the number of appellants should be coded as six.
When coding the detailed nature of participants, use your personal knowledge about the participants, if you are completely confident of the accuracy of your knowledge, even if the specific information is not in the opinion. For example, if "IBM" is listed as the appellant it could be classified as "clearly national or international in scope" even if the opinion did not indicate the scope of the business. 

Your task concerns the first listed appellant. The nature of this litigant falls into the category "private business (including criminal enterprises)". Your task is to classify the scope of this business into one of the following categories: "local" (individual or family owned business, scope limited to single community; generally proprietors, who are not incorporated); "neither local nor national" (e.g., an electrical power company whose operations cover one-third of the state); "national or multi-national" (assume that insurance companies and railroads are national in scope); and "not ascertained".

PER CURIAM.
This appeal depends upon the meaning of Rule 4 of the Equity Rules of the District Court for the Eastern District of New York: “If justice requires, the court after issue joined, may refuse to permit the plaintiff to discontinue, even though the defendant cannot have affirmative relief under the pleadings, and though his only prejudice is the vexation and expense of a possible second suit upon the same cause of action.” The suit had been at issue nearly nine months, and when it came on for trial at the equity term, the plaintiff, without any previous intimation of such a purpose, moved to dismiss it without prejudice. Its excuse was that the defendant had ceased using the supposed infringing hoist and was then using the plaintiff’s. Although they had not formally intervened, the manufacturer of the Levinstim hoist, which the defendant had abandoned, had taken over the defense of this suit; and it insisted upon going on with it to final decree. This the judge ruled that it might do, upon which the plaintiff defaulted, and left the court. The manufacturer on the defendant’s behalf then put in a defense, at the conclusion of which the bill was dismissed on the merits. The plaintiff complains that this was an abuse of discretion; but we cannot agree. It did not at all follow because the defendant had given up the Levinstim hoist and begun to use the Carlson, that the controversy had become moot. He was being defended by the makers of the first, and had shown his original preference for it; there was no reason to suppose that in other buildings he would not go back to it, if his first choice turned out not to be an infringement. Rule 4 was intended to deprive a plaintiff in equity of his ancient power to discontinue his suit at any time at his pleasure, vexing the defendant with repeated litigation; it put the decision within the trial court’s discretion. When a plaintiff waits until the cause is called for trial, and until the defendant has fully prepared and attends with his witnesses, it is certainly no abuse of discretion for the judge to hold that “justice requires” that the cause shall go to decree. To discontinue at such a time is some evidence of a disposition merely to harass the defendant.
Decree affirmed.

Question: This question concerns the first listed appellant. The nature of this litigant falls into the category "private business (including criminal enterprises)". What is the scope of this business?
A. local
B. neither local nor national
C. national or multi-national
D. not ascertained
Answer:

Answer: D