Geoffrey Zakarian who appears in a few Food Network shows, and runs two upscale New York restaurants has filed for personal bankruptcy, according to The New York Times. The filing comes as a reaction to $ 1 million in lawsuits initiated by the former employees of one of his restaurants that closed three years ago.
Kitchen staff of the Country, formerly housed in the Carlton filed a class action lawsuit against Zakarian. The suit alleges he neglected to pay staff for overtime, falsified payrolls to cheat them of pay and deducted staff meals that they were never given from their paychecks.
The Chapter 7 bankruptcy listed 179 creditors, 152 of which are former employees at Country. The bankruptcy filing was “due to the enormous costs of defending a class action lawsuit”, according to Zakarian’s publicist Jaret T Keller in a statement to The New York Times. Zarakarian denies the allegations of his former kitchen staff, but defending the lawsuit would cost several hundred thousand dollars. According to Zakarian’s financials, he has assets worth $50,000 with liabilities of over $1 million.
The prospect of becoming bankrupt is hard to face, so many people in dire financial situations can enlist a bankruptcy attorney to protect their assets. Lawsuits along with quickly amassing debt can become unbearable. A qualified bankruptcy lawyer can work to alleviate the financial troubles litigation or accumulated debt can create for the individual. The courts recognize that people and businesses face debt they can be unable to pay off and a bankruptcy attorney can help stave off financial ruin.
