They were all there last night, my mischpuka!

You know, by virtue of my position I am obligated to attend pretty much all of these bar functions, which vary in quality and can be anywhere from painful to mildly pleasant depending on my mood and dry Gibson intake.

Still, I think the Young Lawyers Section puts on one of the better judicial receptions, with a nice turnout and surprisingly good food.

The mood lighting and open bar made for perfect canoodling, and I was doing pretty well with a certain unnamed sweetie before a hulking Gargantuan showed up and blew the whole thing.

Curse you Randy Kroner!

So I thought the Federation reception was pretty good for this type of event.

Lots of judges, some very touching speeches (Judge Gerstein introduced his family and longtime staff, to much applause), and Randy Kroner.

What more can you ask for?

Did you all catch this moving story about Tod Aronovitz' fight for justice for Leonard Krys:

On Nov. 30, 1991, Krys boarded a Lufthansa 747 in Miami, headed to a seminar in Frankfurt, Germany. About an hour out, off the Georgia coast, severe chest pains hit and he turned gray.

The pilot refused to divert or return to Miami. In legal filings, Krys described how a flight attendant forced him back to his seat after he lay down in the aisle, how some passengers complained that they couldn't see the movie because he kept raising his arms, and how other business-class passengers groused about not being able to smoke.

`HE REALLY SUFFERED'

Although a German gynecologist on the plane gave him nitroglycerin tablets, Krys spent nine hours gasping, sweating and clutching his chest.

''He really suffered,'' his wife said. The episode destroyed much of his heart-wall muscle.

''He was bedridden for months and lost his business,'' Sebastian said.

Krys won a lawsuit against Lufthansa in Miami federal court -- a non-jury trial -- which the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld. The airline argued that the incident should have been classified as an accident, per the Warsaw Convention, capping his payout at $75,000.

The United States Supreme Court refused to hear the airline's appeal, and in 1999 awarded Krys and his wife $3 million.

''As a result of his seven-year legal battle . . . domestic carriers for the first time installed defibrillators onboard all their flights,'' said Miami attorney Tod Aronovitz, who represented Krys.

Several lawyers had turned down the case before Krys found Aronovitz, who said he saw ``an honest and sincere man who had undergone a nightmare. . . . He was a man with a very positive attitude toward life, and a pleasure to represent.''

Krys ''filed the lawsuit for all the right reasons,'' Aronovitz said. ``He was looking for an apology and to get them to be more customer-friendly.''

See, what do I always say -- you do well by doing good.

So who else is going to the Federation Judicial Reception tonight:

This year’s Judicial Reception will recognize three outstanding legal professionals in Miami, including the Honorable Joseph P. Farina, who will receive the Community Service Award; the Honorable Norman S. Gerstein, who will be honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award; and Richard C. Milstein, Esq., recipient of the Honorable Theodore “Ted” Klein Special Recognition Award.

I don't know about you, but I'm bringing a complete set of the Zloch/Moreno memos.

You never know when you need some good cocktail conversation material, right?

Seriously, congrats to those being honored, and thank you for your service.

Well I'm just about done for the day and soon I'll be heading over to the Hyatt to hobnob with many of you and also Brett Barfield.

Actually, I believe the ticket contractually obligates you to mingle with Brett.

I kid I kid -- Brett's a great guy (darn adhesion contracts!).

See you there!