Meet the Speakers 2021

Chris Burti

Chris earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Management from East Carolina University and received his Juris Doctor from the University of North Carolina School of Law (Chapel Hill).

After fifteen years in private practice he left the law firm of Lewis & Burti in 1994 to join Statewide Title, Inc., where he serves as Vice President and Senior Legal Counsel. Chris concentrated his practice in the areas of Commercial Real Estate, Residential Real Estate and Governmental Law. As counsel for Statewide Title, Inc., Chris works with attorneys across the State in resolving complex legal issues in residential, governmental and commercial transactions involving real property. He is active in providing input and advice on drafting legislation to increase certainty in land records, mortgage lending and to correct problems affecting real property.

Chris is the principal course planner and speaker for continuing legal education seminars for Statewide Title, Inc., and has been a CLE presenter for the North Carolina Bar Association, The University of North Carolina School of Law, Wake Forest University School of Law, Professional Educational Systems, Inc., the North Carolina Association of Municipal Attorneys and other professional associations. He is the principal author on the topic of Real Property Law for the Statewide Title, Inc. Newsletter and Legal Memorandum. These articles were frequently reprinted in the Campbell Law Observer and other legal journals.

Chris is a Past President of the North Carolina Land Title Association and has served for two terms as its General Counsel. He has previously served on the North Carolina Bar Association Real Property Section Council, the North Carolina Bar Association Board of Governors, on its Executive Committee and currently serves as Past Chair of the Senior Lawyers Division.

David Ferrell

David P. Ferrell is a partner with Nexsen Pruet, PLLC’s Raleigh NC office, where he concentrates his law practice in civil matters, including legislative representation, eminent domain, real estate, civil litigation, professional liability defense, energy and public utilities, administrative and regulatory, business, and construction litigation. Ferrell is NCLTA’s lobbyist and serves as legal and legislative counsel to professional trade associations, including representing their interests before the General Assembly and various Executive Branch agencies. He frequently lectures on right-of-way acquisition, condemnation law, and legislative matters at various seminars and CLEs.

Ferrell earned B.A. degrees in Political Science and Economics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a J.D. from Campbell University School of Law. He is admitted to practice in North Carolina and the U. S. District Court, Eastern, Middle, Western Districts of North Carolina, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court of the United States. He is a member of the Wake County (Member: Professionalism and Bench/Bar Committees) and North Carolina (Member, Real Property; Litigation; Construction and Administrative Law Sections) Bar Associations.

John McLean

John is currently Senior Underwriting Counsel for BridgeTrust Title Group and is based out of the Charlotte, NC office.  Mr. McLean has been employed in a number of positions in the title insurance industry having formerly worked as (1) North Carolina State Agency Manager for First American Title Insurance Company (2) North Carolina State Counsel for Commonwealth Title Insurance Company and Lawyers Title Insurance Corporation, (3) counsel for First American Title of the Carolinas in Charlotte, NC, (4) manager and counsel for First American Title of the Piedmont in Greensboro, NC.  Prior to Mr. McLean’s work in the title insurance industry, he was in private practice in Charlotte, NC, where he represented commercial real estate lenders and in Raleigh, NC, where he practiced residential real estate law.  Mr. McLean is a graduate of NC State University (BA ’89 and BS ’90) and UNC-Chapel Hill (JD ’93).

Christina Pearsall

Christina Freeman Pearsall, a member of Schell Bray PLLC in Greensboro, North Carolina, focuses her practice primarily on commercial real estate transactions. She assists developers, property managers, individual and corporate investors, and other businesses with the acquisition, development, financing, leasing and disposition of real property. She has worked with various types of commercial properties, including shopping centers, office projects, multi-family complexes, industrial centers, and senior-living facilities.

Ms. Pearsall also has considerable experience representing both landlords and tenants in negotiating and preparing commercial leases for retail, office, restaurant and industrial properties.

Ms. Pearsall has served on the Council of the Real Property Section of the North Carolina Bar Association since 2017 and is currently serving as Chair of the Council.  She is a past president and past member of the Board of Directors of Piedmont Triad Commercial Real Estate Women (PT CREW).  Ms. Pearsall is also a member of the Greensboro Bar Association, CREW Network and the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC).  She earned her BSW degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, JD, magna cum laude, from North Carolina Central University School of Law and her LL.M. in Taxation from Boston University School of Law.  She is admitted to practice in North Carolina and Massachusetts. 

Mark Seaton

Mark E. Seaton has served as executive vice president and chief financial officer of First American Financial Corporation since March 2013.

Since joining First American in 2006, Mr. Seaton has served in a number of roles, including management of the Company’s treasury, investment management, financial planning and investor relations activities. He has been a driving influence on the Company’s strategic planning, innovation and margin improvement initiatives.

Prior to joining the company, Mr. Seaton worked in private equity and in the investment banking industry. He holds a B.A. in economics from Stanford University and an M.B.A from The Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College.

Dan Wold

Daniel M. Wold is Executive Vice President, Industry Relations & Strategic Initiatives, and Corporate Secretary of Old Republic National Title Insurance Company (the “Company”). He is a member of the Company’s Executive Leadership Team. In his current role, he monitors and advises on national developments affecting the Title Insurance Industry (the “Industry”); and assists with strategic initiatives relating to developments impacting the Company due to changes and challenges confronting the Industry. Prior to 2020, he was the Company’s General Counsel and managed the underwriting, regulatory and transactional group of the Company’s Corporate Legal Department. Dan is active in the American Land Title Association (ALTA), and currently serves as its President-elect. He has served on ALTA’s Board of Governors since 2015; and since 2009 has served on various other ALTA committees either as a participant or as Chairperson. Dan was formerly a partner in the Anchorage, Alaska law firm of Hughes, Thorsness, Powell, Huddleston & Bauman LLC., with a practice emphasizing bankruptcy, real estate, banking law and commercial litigation. He obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota, and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Minnesota Law School.

David Woods

David’s legal career has always been focused on real estate. He was admitted to the North Carolina State Bar in 2000 after graduating from the University of North Carolina School of Law. David practiced real estate law at a larger firm until the spring of 2018 when he and Jason Moss left to form Moss Woods PLLC.

David handles all commercial real estate transactions and commercial title examinations for the firm. Offering clients a “one-stop shop” for title and commercial real estate matters, he serves the entire state of North Carolina.

David regularly assists with title certifications, acquisition, financing, development, leasing and disposition of all types of commercial real estate.  Additionally, David represents banks and other lenders in connection with commercial real estate lending transactions.  His clients include title insurance companies, banks, buyers, sellers, borrowers, landlords and tenants of commercial real estate.

David has also been a leader in the North Carolina Bar Association.  He is a past member of the North Carolina Bar Association Board of Governors and the North Carolina Bar Foundation Board of Directors.  During the last two years of his term, David was on the Executive Committee of each Board.  Prior to his election to the NCBA Board of Governors, David was Chair of the North Carolina Bar Association Real Property Section, the largest section of the NCBA.

As evidence of the respect of his peers, David has been elected to Business North Carolina’s “Legal Elite”. He also holds Martindale – Hubbell’s highest rating of AV Preeminent.