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Variables petitioner and respondent provide detailed information about all parties, except the identity of the state if a state (or one of its subdivisions) is a party, petitioner and respondent variables note only whether a state is a party, not the state's name.
Plaintiff v Defendant designates who was who in trial court, but once it is has been appealed, the person who is appealing may not have been the Plaintiff so to avoid confusion, it is just best to sat appellant, and respondent. Or even opposing party, or adverse party.