Marcus

Before: SCHROEDER, FLETCHER and PREGERSON, Circuit Judges.

This is an appeal pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 and 28 U.S.C. § 1826 from an order holding a law firm and its custodian of record in contempt for refusing to obey a district court order to produce documents. Appellants are attorneys for the creditors’ committee (“Committee”) in a . bankruptcy proceeding. The documents are sought by Michael E. Parker, who controlled the debt- or corporation and who is now a criminal defendant. The only important issue we need to consider is whether there is an attorney client privilege covering communications between a creditors’ committee in a bankruptcy proceeding and the attorneys for such a committee. We hold that there is a privilege in the circumstances of this case, where the party seeking the documents is engaged in adversarial litigation against the creditors’ committee and has no fiduciary relation to the Committee or its counsel.

BACKGROUND

The underlying criminal action concerns the management of Parker North American Corporation (“PNA”) by Parker. In 1989, after the corporation filed for bankruptcy-protection, the Committee was appointed by the United States Trustee…