privy /'pri-vē/ n pl priv·ies [Anglo-French privé, from Old French, intimate, confidant, from privé intimate, familiar, from Latin privatus private]: one having privity; esp: one who acquires an interest in the subject matter (as property) of prior or pending litigation and is bound by the judgment as if he or she were a party to the action
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam-Webster. 1996.