Associates of a former White House aide who was indicted last month for obstruction of justice and perjury in the CIA leak case, I. Lewis Libby, have formed a defense fund to help pay his legal bills, a person involved in the effort said yesterday.

“It has been set up,” the source, who asked not to be named, said. “He’s fighting the charges. He wants to clear his good name. He has many friends, colleagues, and supporters who want to stand with him and do that.”

A five-count indictment returned on Oct. 28 charges that Mr. Libby lied to FBI agents and a grand jury investigating a leak of the identity of a CIA employee, Valerie Plame. Her name appeared in the press in 2003 after her husband, Joseph Wilson IV, went public with criticism of President Bush’s claims about Iraqi nuclear programs. Mr. Wilson’s critique was based on a CIA-sponsored trip he took to Africa in 2002 to investigate alleged procurement of nuclear materials.

After the indictment, Mr. Libby, who is an attorney, resigned his position as chief of staff to Vice President Cheney. Mr. Libby, who was not charged for the leak itself, has entered a not guilty plea in the case.

“He’s not a wealthy man. He’s got a young family,” the Libby associate said. Asked if there is a limit on the dollar amount of donations or any restriction on who may donate, the source said, “We’re still putting it together.”

Overseeing Mr. Libby’s trial team are Theodore Wells Jr. of Manhattan and William Jeffress Jr. of Washington.