Scarcella, Louis A.

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Hofstra Law's Scholarship

Hofstra Law Review Volume 45 Issue 4 Article 5 5-1-2017 Hofstra Law School Memorial Service for Professor Alan N. Resnick: November 17, 2016 Louis A. Scarcella Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarlycommons.law.hofstra.edu/hlr  Part of the Law Commons Recommended Citation Scarcella, Louis A. (2017) "Hofstra Law School Memorial Service for Professor Alan N. Resnick: November 17, 2016," Hofstra Law Review: Vol. 45: Iss. 4, Article 5. Available at: https://scholarlycommons.law.hofstra.edu/hlr/vol45/iss4/5 This document is brought to you for free and open access by Scholarship @ Hofstra Law. It has been accepted for inclusion in Hofstra Law Review by an authorized administrator of Scholarship @ Hofstra Law. For more information, please contact lawscholarlycommons@hofstra.edu. HOFSTRA LAW SCHOOL MEMORIAL SERVICEFOR PROFESSOR ALAN N. RESNICK:NOVEMBER 17, 2016Louis A. Scarcella*Alan Resnick changed my life. In the course of our forty-yearrelationship, he was my teacher, my mentor, and my close friend. To alarge extent, Alan Resnick made me who I am today.I first met Alan in the fall of 1974 when we started Hofstra LawSchool together. He was a twenty-six-year-old first-time law professorwith an LL.M. degree from Harvard, and I was a first-year law student,just a few years his junior. Alan was young and approachable, with longhair and eventually a mustache-grown, I suspect, to make himself lookolder. We met, not in the formality of the classroom, but casually, in thehalls of the building, and while I was not a student in his class at thetime, he would always greet me by name whenever our paths crossed.I was in my second year when Alan became my commercial lawprofessor and later taught my bankruptcy class. He was a brilliant legalscholar, but more importantly, he was an incredible teacher. His classeswere exciting and engaging. He would introduce topics and then buildon them logically, always making sure that his students understoodunderlying concepts before moving on. To promote a deeperunderstanding of the topics he covered, not only would he explain theexisting law, he also provided us with a historical perspective, detailinghow and why the law had evolved. Everything he taught abstractly, heapplied to real-world situations through his repeated use ofhypotheticals. Anyone who has taken a bankruptcy course with Alanwill have heard about the now-"famous" hypothetical, "Jones's ShoeStore." He inspired us with his passion for the law and his love oflearning. If we tried to take shortcuts, he would remind us,* United States Bankruptcy Judge for the Eastern District of New York, Special Professorof Law, Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University. This tribute, delivered beforeProfessor Resnick's family, friends, and colleagues, was adapted for publication by the Hofstra LawReview.10711Scarcella: Hofstra Law School Memorial Service for Professor Alan N. ResnickPublished by Scholarship @ Hofstra Law, 20171OFSTRA LAW REVIEW"Don't be lazy-read the Bankruptcy Code." Alan made learning thelaw easy, and he was the best professor I have ever had.Alan's prodigious teaching skills were surpassed only by hisdedication to his students. He was always available to give his studentsadvice and support; he cared deeply about them, and he truly wantedthem to succeed. This was certainly the case for me. While I was still inlaw school, as an unpaid law clerk for a bankruptcy judge in Westbury,Alan became my unofficial and equally unpaid faculty advisor. Almostdaily, I would stop by his office to discuss core concepts and majorthemes of both consumer and business bankruptcy cases. Thosediscussions helped me understand how to find the answer to anybankruptcy question. There was never a time when Alan made me feelthat I was imposing on him; to the contrary, he never rushed me out thedoor, and his making the time to sit with me clearly showed how muchhe enjoyed mentoring students and how much he loved analyzingthe law.Alan's impact on his students did not end upon graduation. Like hewas to so many others, Alan was my mentor for my entire career. I willnever forget the first piece of advice he gave me after law school.Having received an offer from a New York City law firm, whereassociates typically held degrees from Columbia, Yale, and Harvard, Ihesitated about accepting the position. Thankfully, Alan was there togive me confidence. Without hesitation, he said, "You have to reach forit-I have no doubt you'll succeed. You have to believe in yourself."As an associate at that firm, and even after I made partner, Alanwould be the first person I called whenever I had any kind of success,whether in the courtroom or the boardroom. Alan was always interestedin hearing about my day and was always encouraging. Conversationwould naturally move from the law to sports and, of course, to family.Alan loved his family. He was a wonderful husband and father. Thatlove is reflected in his wife, Jill, and his sons, Brian and Craig, andtheir families.As my life-long mentor and my friend, Alan knew it was my dreamto someday become a bankruptcy judge. With that goal in mind, and tohone my legal skills, Alan encouraged me to participate in paneldiscussions on bankruptcy and commercial law. And, of course, it wasAlan who gave me my first speaking opportunity-he asked me toreplace him on a panel in Washington, D.C., when I was just a third-yearassociate. Needless to say, I prepared round-the-clock so I would not letAlan down.1072 [Vol. 45:10712Hofstra Law Review, Vol. 45, Iss. 4 [2017], Art. 5https://scholarlycommons.law.hofstra.edu/hlr/vol45/iss4/5THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF ALAN N RESNICKAlan also encouraged me to write on timely topics in the ever-changing world of bankruptcy. Again, it was Alan who gave me theopportunity to publish. He asked me to pen a couple of chapters for abook on bankruptcy strategy,' and later asked me to serve as acontributing author to Collier's Bankruptcy Practice Guide.2Finally, Alan gave me the opportunity to teach. When Hofstra LawSchool needed an adjunct professor to teach the Bankruptcy course inthe evening division, Alan reached out to me. I was thrilled. But, I mustadmit, when I proudly explained to my wife, Joanne, that I would beteaching at Hofstra Law School, her response was a little ego-deflating."Let me get this straight. Alan Resnick will be teaching the Bankruptcycourse during the day, and you will be teaching it at night? ... Whywould anyone want to take the course with you?" she astutely asked. Shehad a point, and Alan and I had a good laugh over it.Three years ago, I told Alan that I planned to apply for thebankruptcy judge position in Central Islip. Of course, he wasencouraging and brimming with confidence. Because of him, I had asolid foundation in the law, had made wise career choices, and hadspeaking, writing, and teaching experience, all of which helped me inmy quest to become a bankruptcy judge. At my investiture ceremony,the first person I publicly thanked was Alan.As he has done for countless other students, Alan Resnick changedmy life, and his influence will continue to guide me in everything I do.Like all of his students, I will try to carry on his legacy. He will live onin every decision I write, in every student, associate, or law clerk Imentor, and in every class I teach.This semester, I am teaching Alan's Bankruptcy course here at thelaw school. As I prepare my weekly class lectures, I hear Alan's voicetelling me to be practical, to use hypotheticals, and to break things downso the students understand the core concepts and master the tools tosolve any bankruptcy problem. Because Alan played such a pivotal rolein my life, twice a week, since the beginning of the semester, when Iarrive at the law school to teach, I follow the same, simple ritual. Beforegoing to my classroom, I make my way to the second floor of thebuilding. First, I find the photograph of a young Alan Resnick that hangson the wall-the Alan I remember so well. I think of him teaching with atwinkle in his eye and a smile on his face, pacing back and forth in the1. See Louis Scarcella, Obtaining Subordination of Claims, in BANKRUPTCY PRACTICE ANDSTRATEGY 15-1 to 15-53 (1987).2. See I COLLIER BANKRUPTCY PRACTICE GUIDE (Alan N. Resnick & Henry J. Sommereds., 2016).2017] 10733Scarcella: Hofstra Law School Memorial Service for Professor Alan N. ResnickPublished by Scholarship @ Hofstra Law, 20171074 HOFSTRA LAW REVIEW [Vol. 45:1071classroom, doing what he loved-telling the story of bankruptcy. Then, Ilook at his corner office, now sadly empty. I tell Alan I am doing mybest for his students, and I thank him for all he has done and all hecontinues to do for me. Then, I go upstairs to teach, and talk aboutJones's Shoe Store.4Hofstra Law Review, Vol. 45, Iss. 4 [2017], Art. 5https://scholarlycommons.law.hofstra.edu/hlr/vol45/iss4/5

Hofstra Law School Memorial Service for Professor Alan N. Resnick: November 17, 2016

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Hofstra Law School Memorial Service for Professor Alan N. Resnick: November 17, 2016

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