Proper Title has hired Richard (Dick) Bales as senior underwriting consultant and counsel, the company announced.
The company said Bales will provide counsel to attorneys, examiners and closers to help ensure smooth closings as the firm expands.
“Dick Bales is basically the godfather of title,” Proper Title Executive Vice President Kathy Kwak said in a release. “Everyone knows him and reads his materials.
“Dick’s expertise will help strengthen our attorney-agent client relationships, especially as we grow our business into new Chicago suburban markets,” Kwak said. “Internally, he will be a tremendous resource as we hold learning sessions where Dick will address our staff on a variety of title topics. Title examiners will also be able to tap into his storehouse of knowledge.”
Bales recently retired after a 31-year career at Chicago Title Insurance Co., where he served as assistant regional counsel. He has written numerous articles for the Chicago Bar Association, the DuPage County Bar Association and the Illinois State Bar Association.
“My new position at Proper Title allows me to keep doing all the things I love: mentoring, teaching, speaking and writing,” Bales said. “I have worked with Proper Title professionals since the firm was founded, and I respect the company and its accomplishments. I’m honored to join an entrepreneurial organization with a growth mindset.
“In my 30-plus years in the industry, I have written on just about everything title-related, so attorneys can ask me a question and I’ll usually be able send them an answer from my previous writings,” Bales said. “Attorneys know they can get a hold of me for advice on anything from executing a deed to waiving a document on title.”