(a) Who may appear as a party. Any person may apply to appear in an investigation as a party, either in person or by representative, by filing an entry of appearance with the Secretary. Each entry of appearance shall state briefly the nature of the person's reason for participating in the investigation and state the person's intent to file briefs with the Commission regarding the subject matter of the investigation. The Secretary shall promptly determine whether the person submitting the entry of appearance has a proper reason for participating in the investigation. In any investigation conducted under part 207 of this chapter, industrial users, and if the merchandise under investigation is sold at the retail level, representative consumer organizations, will be deemed to have a proper reason for participating in the investigation. If it is found that a person does not have a proper reason for participating in the investigation, that person shall be so notified by the Secretary and shall not be entitled to appear in the investigation as a party. A person found to have a proper reason for participating in the investigation shall be permitted to appear in the investigation as a party, and acceptance of such person's entry of appearance shall be signified by the Secretary's inclusion of such person on the service list established pursuant to paragraph (d) of this section.

(b) Time for filing.

(1) Except in the case of investigations conducted under part 207 of this chapter, each entry of appearance shall be filed with the Secretary not later than twenty-one (21) days after publication of the Commission's notice of investigation in the Federal Register.

(2) In the case of investigations conducted under subpart B of part 207 of this chapter, each entry of appearance shall be filed with the Secretary not later than seven (7) days after publication of the Commission's notice of investigation in the Federal Register. A party that files a notice of appearance during such time need not file an additional notice of appearance during the portion of the investigation conducted under subpart C of part 207 of this chapter.

(3) Notwithstanding paragraph (b)(2) of this section, a party may file an entry of appearance during the final phase of an investigation conducted under part 207 of this chapter no later than twenty-one (21) days prior to the hearing date listed in the Federal Register notice published pursuant to §207.24(b) of this chapter.

(4) In the case of reviews conducted under subpart F of part 207 of this chapter, each entry of appearance shall be filed with the Secretary not later than twenty-one (21) days after publication in the Federal Register of the notice of institution described in §207.60(d) of this chapter.

(5) Notwithstanding paragraph (b)(4) of this section, a party may file an entry of appearance in a review conducted under subpart F of part 207 of this chapter within the period specified in the notice issued under §207.62(c) of this chapter. This period shall be at least 45 days.

(c) Late filing. Any entry of appearance filed with the Secretary after the filing date established in paragraph (b) of this section shall be referred to the Chairman, or other person designated to conduct the investigation, who shall promptly determine whether to accept such entry for good cause shown by the person desiring to file the notice. The Secretary shall promptly notify the submitter of a decision to deny the entry, or if the entry is accepted, include such person on the service list established pursuant to paragraph (d) of this section.

(d) Service list. Upon the expiration of the time for filing notices of appearance established in paragraph (b) of this section, the Secretary shall prepare a service list. The service list shall contain the names and addresses of all persons, or their representatives, who are parties to the investigation pursuant to §201.2(h) and paragraph (a) of this section. Upon the acceptance of a late entry of appearance pursuant to paragraph (c) of this section, the Secretary shall amend the service list to include the name and address of the person whose notice has been accepted and shall promptly forward such notice to all parties to the investigation.

[56 FR 11922, Mar. 21, 1991, as amended at 61 FR 37828, July 22, 1996; 63 FR 30607, June 5, 1998]