The Wacky Caterer Files for Bankruptcy

For reasons that will be clear in this piece, I dedicate it to my friend, attorney Jim Pagano, who passed away in 2025.

This post is a continuation of the previous post “The Wacky Caterer”. As in that post, the story is true, the client names are changed, and the lawyer names are real. From the little I knew about bankruptcy, the Judge’s advice was correct. I could not continue defending the wackster on a case by case basis. We needed to stop the insanity, something I later learned was the hallmark of EVERY bankruptcy case.

At this point in my career, 3 years in practice and 28 years old, I’d never had a case with bankruptcy issues, nor had I taken the class in law school. I only knew of one “bankruptcy attorney”. I had never actually spoken to Barry N. Seidel, but I knew he was a bankruptcy attorney because sometimes people mistakenly called my office looking for him.

So, seeking to refer the wacky caterer, I made the following phone call..... “May I speak to Barry Seidel, please?” “Who is calling?” “Barry Seidel”. Barry N. Seidel had not been getting calls from people mistakenly looking for ME. I told him I was in general practice, that I had a client who needed a bankruptcy attorney, and I’d heard he did that.

He said, “I am a bankruptcy attorney. I work at a big firm in Manhattan. Right now I’m heavily involved in the Texaco/Pennzoil bankruptcy. Who would the client be in the case you want to refer?” “A wacky caterer.” “I’m not so sure I could get involved in a case like that.” I said, “I know, any chance you could refer me to someone?” He thought about it a bit and said, “I know a guy named Jim Pagano, who just left a good bankruptcy firm to go out on his own. He could probably do a wacky caterer case.”

Not only did Jim Pagano turn out to be a great bankruptcy lawyer who helped the wacky caterer, he became my trusted colleague and close friend for many years.

Jim was a hard-working, case-by-case lawyer, which I immediately recognized and respected. He loved talking about bankruptcy, both the legal aspects and the strategy. I had no interest in DOING those kinds of cases, but I sure learned a lot talking to Jim about them. As time went on, I encountered many situations where knowing bankruptcy law and strategy made me a much better litigator.

Here are some of the lessons I learned from Jim:

1. People resist filing for bankruptcy, but not only is it often the only sensisble choice, there is usually a “catalyst” that forces the issue.

2. During a legal dispute, when representing a defendant (somebody being sued), bankruptcy is often a very strong card, when not yet played. Powerful if you know how to use it. Sometimes the “soon to be catalyst” gets educated (often by you) as to what your client might do, and suddenly the negotiating posture changes.

3. People fear doing it because “it will ruin my credit”, but almost always their credit is already ruined and they are better off filing and then building it back up, which is very do-able.

4. For lawyers, especially in commercial/corporate cases, representing the creditor side in a bankruptcy case is fascinating and requires high level skills.

Jim had an office in Manhattan and lived in Queens. We often referred matters to each other. Jim knew a lot of lawyers who did all kinds of things, so we got to know each others circles. When my weekly pickup basketball game was a player short, I brought Jim in and he played for a few years.

He was also president of his co-op board and an excellent real estate attorney.

When my wife Felicia was nine months pregnant with our first child, I had a real estate closing scheduled right in the window where I might not be available. I asked Jim if he could be on standby. Sure enough, Felicia went into labor the night before a scheduled closing.

We met under the #7 train in Jackson Heights, where I brought him the file. His wife asked, “Where’s Felicia?”

“At home,” I said. “Early stages of labor.”

She looked at us and said, “You guys are nuts!”

Jim did the closing the next morning without a problem, and my daughter was born shortly after.

Jim also played the guitar. Later in his legal career, he started performing regularly at small gigs. I saw him play many times. I respected that he was so passionate about it. I liked the way he did The Band song “The Weight”.

Although Jim was a few years older than me, I was shocked when I found out he passed away. One of my compadres from the trenches of law practice is gone. I am grateful for having known him, for our friendship, and for the many lessons learned.

Thank you, wacky caterer, for the unexpected gift!