John Pappas Passes

There will have to be a follow-up to this because most will never truly appreciate the underlying depth of John Pappas’ impact on Florida property insurance law until it is fully explained. John Pappas was my dear friend, my law school classmate, and Best Man at my marriage to Kim Merlin. We were close friends and adversaries—a very difficult mix.

I landed on a red-eye from San Francisco yesterday in Atlanta. I typically am doing something that causes these crazy schedules. I had just finished the Rolex Big Boat Regatta on Merlin in San Francisco. If you like crazy and out of control racing on a 70’ sailboat, here is a video of it:

Merlin racing by the Golden Gate Bridge. (Photo by Daniel Forster)

After I caught an all-night flight to Atlanta following my race to give a speech titled “What Does Your Client Think of You? How Only An Ethically and Value Oriented Public Adjusting Firm Succeeds” I learned that something was wrong.

I received a text about John and his passing from his sister in law. I knew from my last visit with him to be concerned. I just did not think he would die before I saw him again. I guess that is the way it is, or we would constantly be with those we love till the bitter end.

Paul Butler started all this. He should tell the story. But my story with John Pappas is going to be unique because nobody wanted to hire John Pappas in 1982 except me, a punk law clerk who saw great potential in an older friend and law school classmate who kept winning moot court competitions. John loved to argue and take an adverse position on everything and anything just to argue. It was his nature—the perfect insurance property insurance defense lawyer.

The Butler firm, which is now well over 140 attorneys, consisted of Paul Butler, Emory Wood, Sandy Burnette, Bob Freemon, and Bobby Santos when John entered it in 1982. I joined several months later because I clerked longer than Bobby or John, trying not to be so young when I started into the practice. John, Bobby, and I were contemporaries and worked long and spartan hours, to say the least, and were always supporting one another. Scott Dutton and future named partner John Weimuller joined the firm later the following year.

I am not entirely sure what I want to say about John and my fond memories of him. There are so many stories. Yet, to his true nature, he has intentionally asked for no plans for a ceremony after his death. We may just do one last “Pappas storytelling” to get back at him. I think he would not want us to give up despite his feigned afterlife protests.

I would suggest that you take a few minutes to listen to Samuel Barber’s Opus 11, one of my favorite pieces, because it seems to bring out the nature of a deep soul with complex depth:

I will certainly have more to say about John Pappas at a later date. It is just a little thought to do so right now.

Thought For The Day

The deep pain that is felt at the death of every friendly soul arises from the feeling that there is in every individual something which is inexpressible, peculiar to him alone, and is, therefore, absolutely and irretrievably lost.
—Arthur Schopenhauer