Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-ca10-90-01258/USCOURTS-ca10-90-01258-0/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
Bancroft, Avery and McAlister
Appellant
Celeste C. Grynberg
Appellee
Jack J. Grynberg
Appellee

Document Text:

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FI LED 

United Scates Court cf Appeals 

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS Tenth Circuit 

FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT 

In Re: ) 

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JACK J. GRYNBERG & CELESTE C. GRYNBERG, ) 

Debtors. 

BANCROFT, AVERY and MCALISTER, 

Petitioner-Appellant, 

v. 

JACK J. GRYNBERG and CELESTE c. 

GRYNBERG, 

Respondents-Appellees. 

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ORDER AND JUDGMENT* 

JUN 2 7 1991 

ROBERT L. HOECKER 

Clerk 

No. 90-1258 

(D.C. No. 90-F-1571) 

(D. Colo.) 

Before ANDERSON, TACHA, and BRORBY, Circuit Judges. 

After examining the briefs and appellate record, this panel 

has determined unanimously that oral argument would not materially 

assist the determination of this appeal. See Fed. R. App. P. 

34(a)~ 10th Cir. R. 34.1.9. 

submitted without oral argument. 

* 

The case is therefore ordered 

This order and judgment has no precedential value and shall 

not be cited, or used by any court within the Tenth Circuit, 

except for purposes of establishing the doctrines of the law of 

the case, res judicata, or collateral estoppal. 10th Cir. R. 

36.3. 

Appellate Case: 90-1258 Document: 010110128245 Date Filed: 06/27/1991 Page: 1 
Bancroft, Avery and McAlister (appellant) appeals from the 

district court's order denying a motion for pro rata assessment, 

against debtors, of an award of attorney's fees from a class 

action judgment entered in state court litigation. Debtors 

acquired an interest in the class judgment through their 

settlement with three members of the class. Appellant asserted 

this motion for assessment of fees "on behalf of all non-settling 

class members." District court order at 4 (July 3, 1990). 

The threshold issue presented is whether this court has 

jurisdiction to consider the merits of this appeal. Federal Rule 

of Appellate Procedure 3(c) requires that "[t]he notice of appeal 

shall specify the party or parties taking the appeal." Satisfying 

the requirements of Rule 3(c) is a jurisdictional prerequisite; 

failure to do so will result in the dismissal of an appeal for 

lack of appellate jurisdiction. Torres v. Oakland Scavenger Co., 

487 U.S. 312, 314, 317 (1988). Further, the appealing party named 

in the notice of appeal must be the real party in interest to the 

appeal. Cf. Concorde Resources. Inc. v. Woosley (In re Woosley), 

855 F.2d 687, 687-88 (10th Cir. 1988)(appeal of order holding 

defendant's attorneys in contempt dismissed for failure to comply 

with Rule 3(c) where notice of appeal named defendant, rather than 

defendant's attorneys, as appealing party). 

The notice of appeal filed in this case identified Bancroft, 

Avery and McAlister, the attorneys for the class, as the 

appellant. The district court, however, adopted the bankruptcy 

court's determination, to which appellant did not object, that the 

real parties in interest to the motion to assess fees against 

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Appellate Case: 90-1258 Document: 010110128245 Date Filed: 06/27/1991 Page: 2 
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debtors were the nonsettling class members themselves. Bankruptcy 

court recommendation at 5. Failure to name these real parties in 

interest, the class members, in the notice of appeal, therefore, 

deprives this court of jurisdiction to consider the merits of this 

appeal. See Torres, 487 U.S. at 314, 317. 

Appellant itself cannot be deemed a party sufficiently 

interested in the appeal to be considered a proper appellant. In 

order to have standing to appeal from bankruptcy proceedings, a 

party must be a person aggrieved by the order being appealed. 

Holmes v. Silver Wings Aviation, Inc., 881 F.2d 939, 940 (10th 

Cir. 1989). "Under this standard, the right to appellate review 

is limited ... to those persons whose rights or interests are 

'directly and adversely affected pecuniarily' by the decree or 

order .... " Id. (citations omitted). The district court 

adopted the bankruptcy court's unchallenged determination that the 

motion to - assess fees against debtors "does not seek to increase 

in any way the compensation and reimbursement in which the [state] 

court has previously found Bancroft entitled. Bancroft will 

receive the same amount whether or not 

present motion. " Bankruptcy court 

this court approves 

recommendation at 

the 

4-5. 

Appellant continues to assert on appeal that it is pursuing this 

motion on behalf of the class of judgment creditors. Appellant's 

Brief at 1, 5 n.5; Appellant's Reply Brief at 2. 

Appellant asserts that, as "counsel of record and fiduciary 

for the non-settling . class members, [appellant] had the 

standing to act to protect the judgment interests of such class 

members by bringing this motion." Appellant's Reply Brief at 13. 

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Appellate Case: 90-1258 Document: 010110128245 Date Filed: 06/27/1991 Page: 3 
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A fiduciary duty owed to a class, however, will not confer 

standing to assert the interests of that class where the fiduciary 

does not have standing to appeal in the first place. See 

Unsecured Creditors Comm. v. Leavitt Structural Tubing Co., 55 

Bankr. 710, 711 (N.D. Ill. 1985), aff'd, 796 F.2d 477 (7th Cir. 

1986). Here, appellant lacks standing to assert the interests of 

the class members on appeal. Cf. Sheftelman v. Standard Metals 

Corp., 839 F.2d 1383, 1384-86 (10th Cir. 1987)(individual 

bondholder had standing, in bankruptcy court and on appeal, to 

assert claim alleging lack of notice on behalf of himself and 

similarly situated bondholders, where individual bondholder shared 

in alleged injury to putative class). 

The appeal from the judgment of the United States District 

Court for the District of Colorado is DISMISSED for lack of 

appellate jurisdiction. Debtors' motion for sanctions is DENIED. 

Entered for the Court 

Wade Brorby 

Circuit Judge 

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Appellate Case: 90-1258 Document: 010110128245 Date Filed: 06/27/1991 Page: 4