Boston Market owner Jay Pandya, who faces hundreds of lawsuits from creditors, is filing for personal bankruptcy yet again, just 63 days after initially filing for bankruptcy with the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. A judge dismissed Pandya’s first bankruptcy case last month after he failed to respond to court orders, including repeated requests for more information over the course of two weeks.
This second personal bankruptcy case was filed just one week after Boston Market was court ordered to pay $11.9 million to US Foods in a default judgment decision that was made due to the company’s “willful disregard” for the legal proceedings of the court, including failing to respond to US Foods’ initial legal complaint.
In both bankruptcy filings, Pandya cited $10-$50 million in liabilities and the same range for assets in his bankruptcy paperwork, with under 50 creditors, the largest of which include US Foods, Pizza Hut, and the Internal Revenue Service. While typically, debtors must wait 180 days before filing for bankruptcy again, according to Debt.org, if the debtor’s case was dismissed, then there is no time limit on when you can try again. However, if the debtor ignores a court order or fails to appear for a hearing, a judge might order a 180-day delay on filing again anyway, to prevent abuse of the system.
Pandya is named in most of the lawsuits against Boston Market as head of Engage Brands under the Rohan Group of Companies, which bought Boston Market in 2020 while the then-struggling company was in the midst of a brand transformation that was meant to boost sales and bring Boston Market out of the red. Since then, Rohan Group’s time of ownership has been marred by hundreds of lawsuits, store closures, and a steep downward trajectory for Boston Market’s revenue and reputation.
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