AUGUST 31 – SEPTEMBER 2, 2021 | NAPLES, FL
Ask the Experts
Thursday, September 2 @ 10:20 a.m. ET | Orchid Ballroom
Back for 2021! Rather than making NS3 a 6 day conference to cover all the critical topics industry professionals are facing today, we’re setting aside some time for you to address those questions that keep you up at night.
This is your opportunity to pick the brains of industry leaders. Go one-on-one with icons of the industry in an intimate round table setting. Discussions will focus on compliance, business and operations topics that are critical to your business today.
Each expert(s) will have a designated table in the Orchid Ballroom on Thursday morning. Attendees can work the room at your own pace and visit with the experts on the topics that are instrumental to your business responsibilities including…
Artificial Intelligence
 |
James Schlimmer |
Blockchain
 |
Tali Raphaely |
Cybersecurity
 |
Regina Lowrie |
eClosing / Remote Online Notarizations
 |
Michael Ridgway |
Fair Lending
 |
Ruth Dillingham |
HOA/COA Issues
 |
Kevin Brown |
Good Funds
 |
Tim Evans |
Marketing, Social Media
 |
Linda Grahovec |
Mergers & Acquisitions
 |
Francis “Trip” Riley |
RESPA
 |
Ken Trepeta |
Sales
 |
Darryl Turner |
Workflow Processes
 |
Leslie Wyatt |
James Schlimmer
Managing Partner
Cottrell Title & Escrow
Renowned as a pioneer in the real estate industry, James P. Schlimmer has been paving the way for innovation in a field that has been stagnant and overly complicated for far too long. As a licensed Title Agent, Schlimmer currently serves as the Managing Partner of Cottrell Title & Escrow in Naples, Florida. For nearly a decade, Schlimmer has worked diligently, assisting buyers and sellers by revolutionizing the closing process with a more modern, seamless approach. From remote online notarization, artificial intelligence to expedited closing procedures through Resware’s title production software, Schlimmer and his team at Cottrell have cultivated laborious, outdated practices into more efficacious, streamlined initiatives while still maintaining an unprecedented level of professionalism, ensuring all parties involved needs are met and expectations are surpassed.
As the incumbent Board Director for Alanna.ai, Schlimmer spearheaded the implementation of the first virtual ai resource to simplify the closing process, saving real estate agents, lenders, buyers, and sellers time and effort. In 2021, Schlimmer founded efizbo, becoming the CEO of a pioneering real estate online platform that streamlines the entire For-Sale-By-Owner process, from contract to close. Designed to offer a 100% online real estate closing experience, this ingenious e-service helps sellers save thousands of dollars on closing costs while making the entire experience easier. Whether it’s saving clients money or it’s developing new ways to change the real estate industry, Schlimmer remains dedicated to redefining the closing experience and providing game-changing updates to the title & escrow methodology.
Linda Grahovec
Vice President, National Agency Director of Education and Marketing Strategy
FNF Family of Companies
Linda has been in real estate transactions services since 1986. She was a full time real estate broker for 10 years and still holds her managing broker’s license in Illinois. She expanded her knowledge base by working for a law firm as a real estate paralegal for 8 years. She worked closely with attorneys, lenders, realtors and consumers from contracts to closings.
The next open chair at the closing table was that of a title officer. Linda spent 8 years working in a direct operation with responsibilities from new construction to sales management. For several years she worked with title agents of all sizes in Illinois and a 15 State Division. She now supports title agency business development, web and digital technology, marketing strategy, national communications, internal and agent education on various topics (CLE and non-CLE), and business plan analysis for FNF National Agency.
Linda, an award winning speaker, has presented for ALTA, FBI, FNF, HUD OIG, IDFPR, ILTA, IRELA, NBI, WLTA and other organizations across the country. She is part of the IL Mortgage Fraud Task Force and administers regulatory compliance laws, Industry Best Practices and CyberSecurity for Title Agents of Alamo Title, Chicago Title, Commonwealth Land Title, Fidelity National Title and National Title of NY.
When not at her job, she enjoys her 6 children, 9 grandchildren, loves to cook, entertain, photography and water sports
Regina Lowrie
President and CEO, former Chairman, Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA)
Dytrix
Regina M. Lowrie, CMB, is a recognized national leader and authority in the mortgage and lending industry. She has more than 30 years of experience in the financial services industry and has established and managed multiple successful banking/lending organizations. In 2005, Regina became the first woman chairperson of the national Mortgage Bankers Association and continues to serve on many MBA committees. Regina has also testified before Congress on public policy to include GSE Reform and has served as an expert witness for the financial services industry. As president and CEO of Dytrix, Regina is arming banks and lenders with a comprehensive, real time defense system against wire and identity fraud, the fastest growing type of cybercrime according to the FBI.
Tali Raphaely
President
Armour Title Company
Tali Raphaely is the President of Armour Title Company, a nationwide real estate title company. He’s also an attorney, real estate and tech investor, and an author. Originally from Baltimore, Maryland, he now resides in Miami, Florida.
In 1996, he was awarded a full tuition scholarship by the Nova Southeastern University Shepard Broad School of Law. While in law school, he was selected to serve as an intern for one semester at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, where he worked closely on developing policies and structuring agreements with world leaders on a daily basis. Raphaely was also one of the few who had the honor of being a member of the Law review. He graduated from law school in the top 5% of his class with Magna Cum Laude Honors in 1999. After graduating law school, he had the great honor and privilege of starting his legal career as a Law Clerk for two Judges in the very prestigious Court of Special Appeals of Maryland, where he worked on, and was actively involved in, the drafting of numerous published appellate court opinions that still remain the authoritative law on the legal topics these cases and opinions addressed. Subsequent to providing his service as a law clerk in the Court of Special Appeals, he joined a prominent law firm as a litigation attorney prior to becoming involved in the real estate industry.
Raphaely specializes in real estate law, real estate transactions, complex commercial transactions, and all title matters related to real estate. He has become a leader and prominent figure in his field through his role as President of Armour Title Company, a nationally recognized real estate title company that conducts thousands of real estate transactions nationwide annually. Armour has often been recognized as a true leader in the title insurance industry and has pioneered many programs, systems and processes currently being used by many of Armour’s counterparts in the real estate title industry.
Raphaely’s title company works regularly with the nation’s leading real estate brokerages, banks, and mortgage companies. Among his regular clients are Long and Foster Real Estate, Inc., Coldwell Banker Real Estate, LLC, RE/MAX, LLC, Keller Williams Realty, Inc., Wells Fargo Bank, Bank of America, and countless other industry giants throughout the country.
Having always had a passion for teaching and enriching the lives of those around him, Raphaely is also an author. The focus of his writing is primarily on self-help topics, business advice and on providing others with motivation and inspiration to live greater, more fulfilling lives. His writing topics are derived from over a decade of experience in sales, marketing, management, recruiting, the ownership of his business, buying and selling real estate, buying, and selling businesses, negotiating with clients, vendors and employees, and his intense research and involvement in countless self-help, self-improvement, and self-awareness seminars, books and hands-on programs and events. His new book, The Complete Guide on How to Negotiate, is available for sale on Amazon and in select bookstores.
Tali Raphaely has been at the forefront of blockchain technology since its early days. Being involved with this growing technology for so long has granted him unique insights on how blockchain affect our world. As an expert on blockchain, and regular speaker for blockchain events, Raphaely helps to make sense of this evolving technology. Tali Raphaely speaks on a regular basis to groups and conferences on a variety of Blockchain-related topics in a way which makes sense of this technology and provides quality insight. People who have come to hear him speak have said great things about his ability to translate this subject and engage with audiences in a meaningful way.
Michael Ridgway
CEO and President
Community Title Network, LLC
Mr. Ridgway brings 36 years of experience in successful entrepreneurship, business strategy, business development, organizational leadership, and executive management, with a significant focus in all aspects of the title industry. He has directed, acquired and organically grown title agencies throughout the Mid-Atlantic Region, spearheading two successful exits to title insurance underwriting companies.
After his agency was acquired by Lawyers Title in 1995, Ridgway was asked to serve as a Senior Vice-President of the national management team of LandAmerica, with a specific role of leading Direct Operations for the Northeast Region, where he oversaw the operations of 43 closing offices throughout Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Maine, Maryland, DC, and Virginia.
In 1999, he led the repurchase of his agency from LandAmerica and embarked on a path of successful growth while also standardizing systems, creating economic efficiencies in workflow production, and driving improvements in customer service. In 2005, he sold his title agency to First American and exited the company in 2007.
From 2007 through 2015 he was engaged periodically by principals and executives of small to mid- size title agencies to assist in sales or acquisition strategies, design and implementation of strategic marketing initiatives, analyzing and implementing operational improvements and resolving employee issues. Outside of the title industry, Ridgway has also consulted to regional and international service companies, and assisted executives in strategic M&A planning and execution.
In 2016, envisioning that compliance and regulation would drive mergers and acquisitions within the title industry, he started Community Title Network with the vision to deliver modern business solutions to title agents and to initiate an acquisition and organic growth strategy. Community Title Network has become one of, if not, the fastest growing title agencies in the mid-Atlantic, growing in less than 5 years to more than 20 office locations across Maryland, DC, Virginia, and Delaware.
Ridgway is a proactive and passionate leader, deeply committed to both internal and external customers. He is dedicated to ensuring people, process and profit are aligned properly for the purpose of achieving sustained and profitable relationships among the organization, its management and staff and its customers and clients.
Ridgway has been very active in the Washington Region community, volunteering his time and often taking leadership roles in many non-profit organizations and efforts that serve youth- particularly underprivileged youth. In 2016 he was named the Catholic Business Network for Montgomery County Community Person of the Year. He has been named the 2021 Catholic Businessperson of the Year by the Catholic Business Network of Washington, DC.
Ridgway holds a JD degree from The Columbus School of Law, Catholic University, 1984, and a BA in Economics from Dickinson College, Carlisle PA, 1981. He is a lifelong resident of the Washington Metro Area and resides in Chevy Chase, MD with his wife, Nancy, of 36 years. He and Nancy have 3 adult children and 3 grandchildren.
Francis Trip Riley
Partner
Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr LP
Francis “Trip” Riley, a partner at Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr LP, counsels and defends clients who are facing complex civil litigation filed by a single plaintiff, as well as class actions, relating to commercial and consumer financing, consumer facing services and product sales, and business to business transactions. He prides himself on understanding his clients’ unique businesses and partners with them to help achieve results in line with their goals in the often highly-charged setting of commercial, consumer and corporate litigation.
As co-chair of the firm’s Consumer Financial Services Litiation & Gov’t Enforcement Group, he and the group’s lawyers represent and counsel companies who provide consumer financial products and services, such as those in the real estate settlement services industry, including title insurance underwriters, their insureds and agents, mortgage lenders, brokers and investors, and real estate brokerages and their agents, in all types of civil litigation and government investigations and enforcement actions.
Ken Trepeta
President and Executive Director
Real Estate Services Provider’s Council (RESPRO®)
Ken Trepeta became President and Executive Director of RESPRO® in July of 2015. Prior to joining RESPRO®, Ken served as Director of Real Estate Services for the National Association of Realtors®. He was liaison to senior executives at large real estate firms and their affiliated businesses and NAR’s in house RESPA expert.
Ken worked in government affairs for five years prior to joining NAR as a vice president at both JP Morgan Chase and representing the CEOs of the largest financial services firms in the world at the Financial Services Forum.
Ken began his career in government serving as the Deputy Director for Commission on Affordable Housing and Health Facility Needs for Seniors in the 21st Century and for five years as counsel to Representative Rick Lazio (R-NY).
Ken has a Bachelor of Arts in Economics, Political Science, and Law and Society from Binghamton University (SUNY Binghamton, 1992). He has a J.D. from Hofstra University School of Law (1995) and is a member of the bar in New York and the District of Columbia.
Leslie Wyatt
Director of Regulatory Compliance
SoftPro
Leslie Wyatt is the Director of Regulatory Compliance at SoftPro. She began her career in the real estate industry over 20 years ago, and joined SoftPro in 2002. She currently oversees the Compliance Department with her primary focus being on regulatory issues at the Federal, state and county levels.
Leslie is a member of the ALTA Implementation Task Force, the Title Action Network Steering Committee, the ALTA Government Affairs Committee, the ALTA Membership Committee, the ALTA Education Committee and the TLTA Federal Issues Committee. She has represented ALTA at a congressional briefing regarding the CFPB and the TRID changes. Leslie travels though out country speaking on our industry’s hot topics with a focus on regulatory and compliance. Leslie continuous to work with the CFPB on various projects regarding TRID, UCD, MISMO and other industry hot topics.
Darryl Turner
CEO
The Darryl Turner Corporation
Darryl Turner is the CEO of The Darryl Turner Corporation, Author and Key Note Speaker at over 100 events across the nation, and internationally, each year. He is also CEO of The Leader’s Life Executive Coaching where Darryl personally coaches the top executives from many of the nation’s largest real estate settlement services companies.
Some of Darryl’s books include “The 9 Undeniable Principles of Uncommon Sense” and “Quote Me On That, 365 Daily Quotes To Live By”.
The Darryl Turner Corporation have coached and trained over 6400 settlement services salespeople, over 3,000 escrow / closing professionals from over 1,100 title companies and agencies since 1994.
Darryl & his wife, Raquell, live in South Reno, Nevada and have 5 children and 3 grandchildren. Along with watersports, boating and skiing, Darryl & Raquell love aviation & spending time together working on strategies to help their title and settlement clients achieve their giant goals.
For more information, visit www.DarrylTurner.com or email Info@DarrylTurner.com
Ruth Dillingham
Owner
Dillingham Consulting LLC
Ruth Dillingham, NTP is a highly regarded and nationally recognized attorney who advises mortgage banking and real estate conveyancing professions on legal and regulatory compliance issues related to residential real estate sales and mortgage lending. An attorney in the conveyancing and lending profession for many years, Ruth has a high level of industry specific knowledge and uses her excellent written and verbal communication and presentation skills to communicate legal and technical regulatory information in clear, relatable terms.
In her previous employment with a national title insurance company, Ruth focused on emerging developments which impacted lending, compliance and conveyancing at the national level. She created and presented training programs nationally for the company’s attorneys/agents with a concentration on emerging issues and regulatory compliance.
Prior to that, Ruth was in private practice representing buyers, sellers and mortgage lenders with a special concentration in real estate, mortgage lending and compliance law.
Ruth received her Juris Doctor from Boston University School of Law and her Bachelor of Arts from Mount Holyoke College. She was admitted to practice law in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 1978.
Cynthia Blair
COO, Owner, Attorney
Blair Cato Pickren Casterline, LLC
Cynthia Durham Blair is one of the founding members of the law firm of Blair Cato Pickren Casterline, LLC, which opened its doors in December 2014. Her practice is concentrated in the areas of residential and commercial real estate.
Cynthia graduated from Florida State University (BS 1990), the University of South Carolina School of Law (JD 1992) and the University of South Carolina School of Business (MIBS 1995). She was admitted to the South Carolina Bar in 1993 and admitted to practice law in Florida in 1995. She is also admitted to practice in the United States Supreme Court, the United States District Courts for the District of South Carolina, and the Northern and Southern Districts of Florida.
Cynthia is very involved in the real estate industry, both locally and nationally. She is a Past President of the American Land Title Association (ALTA) and served on ALTA’s Board of Governors for six years. She is also very active in other ALTA committees and task forces. She is a past-chair of the Real Estate Section Council for the South Carolina Bar. Additionally, she is serving on the Board of Directors of the Mortgage Bankers Association of the Carolinas and is a member of the Palmetto Land Title Association (PLTA), the Mortgage Lenders Association of Greater Columbia (MLAGC) and the Building Industry Association of Greater Columbia (BIA). She has served on the boards of and is a past-President of both PLTA and MLAGC.
She has an A/V Preeminent Peer Rating for the highest level of professional excellence in Martindale-Hubbell and is the recipient of several prestigious professional awards including the 2013 Leadership in Law Award from the SC Lawyers Weekly, the Gold Compleat Lawyer Award from the University of South Carolina School of Law and the J. Lee McDonald award for outstanding service to the title industry. She is a graduate of the Leadership South Carolina Class of 2012.
Cynthia is a frequent speaker on real estate and real estate-related topics at CLE and other real estate industry seminars around the country. She resides in Columbia, SC with her two children and has one dog and four cats so she now qualifies as a crazy cat lady. Cynthia enjoys reading fiction, cooking, traveling, Florida State Seminole and University of South Carolina Gamecock football.
Cynthia Blair
COO, Owner, Attorney
Blair Cato Pickren Casterline, LLC
Cynthia Durham Blair is one of the founding members of the law firm of Blair Cato Pickren Casterline, LLC, which opened its doors in December 2014. Her practice is concentrated in the areas of residential and commercial real estate.
Cynthia graduated from Florida State University (BS 1990), the University of South Carolina School of Law (JD 1992) and the University of South Carolina School of Business (MIBS 1995). She was admitted to the South Carolina Bar in 1993 and admitted to practice law in Florida in 1995. She is also admitted to practice in the United States Supreme Court, the United States District Courts for the District of South Carolina, and the Northern and Southern Districts of Florida.
Cynthia is very involved in the real estate industry, both locally and nationally. She is a Past President of the American Land Title Association (ALTA) and served on ALTA’s Board of Governors for six years. She is also very active in other ALTA committees and task forces. She is a past-chair of the Real Estate Section Council for the South Carolina Bar. Additionally, she is serving on the Board of Directors of the Mortgage Bankers Association of the Carolinas and is a member of the Palmetto Land Title Association (PLTA), the Mortgage Lenders Association of Greater Columbia (MLAGC) and the Building Industry Association of Greater Columbia (BIA). She has served on the boards of and is a past-President of both PLTA and MLAGC.
She has an A/V Preeminent Peer Rating for the highest level of professional excellence in Martindale-Hubbell and is the recipient of several prestigious professional awards including the 2013 Leadership in Law Award from the SC Lawyers Weekly, the Gold Compleat Lawyer Award from the University of South Carolina School of Law and the J. Lee McDonald award for outstanding service to the title industry. She is a graduate of the Leadership South Carolina Class of 2012.
Cynthia is a frequent speaker on real estate and real estate-related topics at CLE and other real estate industry seminars around the country. She resides in Columbia, SC with her two children and has one dog and four cats so she now qualifies as a crazy cat lady. Cynthia enjoys reading fiction, cooking, traveling, Florida State Seminole and University of South Carolina Gamecock football.
Kevin Brown
Chief Executive Officer
Avanta Risk Management, Inc.
Kevin Brown is one of the founding members and the Chief Executive Officer of Avanta Risk Management, Inc. Avanta is dedicated to creating HOA solutions that create efficiencies and improve transparency in real estate transactions.
For over 25 years, Kevin has been creating property data solutions for the origination and mortgage servicing space. Following the voice of his customers he decided to tackle the task of centralizing high-quality HOA data into a single database to create meaningful products and services for title companies and the overall real estate vertical.
After attending college, Kevin received his six sigma blackbelt and utilizes those principles today to gain a superior understanding of the challenges facing his clients and the industry. Over the past 4 years Kevin and his team have incorporated the latest technologies, such as RPA and Blockchain to create new insights and transform the current HOA landscape for the betterment of everyone involved in a HOA related real estate transaction.
Kevin is a Texas native and resides in Dallas, TX. When not tackling the industry’s most complex problems, he enjoys spending time with his family, fishing, mentoring colleagues and contemplating his next car purchase.