Member Highlight – Underwriter: Jeff Lees

Jeff Lees started out early in the title business, working as a runner for a closing lawyer during his junior year in high school. He now serves as Area Counsel for the Fidelity National Title Group in Alabama, Mississippi, and Arkansas. Jeff holds a B.S. degree in Accounting from the University of Alabama Culverhouse School of Commerce and a J.D. degree from the University of Alabama School of Law. His impressive credentials include: completing the Program for Leadership Development at Harvard Business School, earning his Alabama Real Estate Commission Sales Person License, becoming a Life Member of the Alabama Center for Real Estate’s Leadership Council, and achieving the rank of Major in the Alabama Army National Guard as a Staff Judge Advocate.

Working daily with title agents, Jeff finds that his job requires focus, responsiveness, creativity, and dedication to customer service. As an underwriter at Fidelity, he is encouraged to assist agents in finding innovative solutions to overcome obstacles that arise during the title process. Throughout his tenure in the title industry, Jeff has seen many changes, including the significant impact of technology on the closing business, both good and bad. Addressing the increasing occurrence of wire fraud, he commented that the:

Great Recession reminded everyone about ‘good funds’, and the increase in wire fraud makes data security and password protection really important.

A native of Birmingham, Alabama, Jeff currently lives with his family in Vestavia Hills. His wife, Meredith, is an attorney with an active commercial litigation practice, and she focuses primarily on securities work. When she is not working, Meredith likes to read, play tennis and travel. Their son, Goodloe, is in the third grade and enjoys playing soccer, golf, baseball, tennis, swimming, and wrestling. Away from work, Jeff is an avid freshwater fisherman, who loves to travel with his father to fishing spots in Alaska, Montana, Colorado, and North Georgia. He has also fished off oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico, in remote places in Manitoba and for tarpon in the Keys. These adventures have taught him that it is:

Fun to get out and go and see beautiful places and see how people do things differently in each.