ALTA Mourns the Loss of James R. Maher
May 6, 2009
The American Land Title Association notes with sympathy and sadness the passing of its former Executive Vice President, James R. Maher. "Jim will be remembered as an unassuming, easy to work with friend of the industry who loved ALTA," said ALTA President Mike Pryor.
Mr. Maher served as Executive Vice President of ALTA from 1988 to 2007and was awarded an honorary membership by the Board of Governors in 2007. Honorary membership is bestowed for performance of distinguished and meritorious service to the association or to the land title industry. ALTA CEO Kurt Pfotenhauer said, "Jim's 24 years of service and leadership are to be commended. I know Jim took great pride in his work, and he especially found joy in the time he spent using his legal skills working with the Forms Committee and the Title Counsel Committee."
Mr. Maher joined ALTA in 1984 as general counsel, and was promoted to the top staff position in October 1988. As Executive Vice President he was responsible for carrying out the association's legislative, legal, educational, public relations and research activities.
Mr. Maher came to ALTA from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development where he was attorney advisor in the Home Mortgage Division for ten years. He drew on his years at HUD and experience working on RESPA to help ALTA respond to HUD's proposed regulations. He was considered one of the experts on RESPA throughout the industry.
Always by his side in his duties to ALTA was his wife, Kathy, who over the years became an important part of the ALTA family. Mr. Maher died in his home in McLean, VA, on Tuesday, May 5th with his beloved wife and his son, Matthew, by his side.
A memorial service will be held in his honor on Sunday, May 17th, at 2:00pm at Trinity United Methodist Church, 1205 Dolley Madison Blvd, McLean, VA. A reception will follow the service in the Fellowship Hall.
If you would like to send a message to the Maher family, please email ALTA at jim@alta.org and we will ensure the family receives your message.
In lieu of flowers, donations in memory of James R. Maher can be sent to:*
Alpha Sigma Phi Alumni Association
Beta Chi Chapter Memorial Scholarship Fund
c/o Scott Stein
3935 Blackstone Avenue, Apt. 6D
Bronx, NY 10471
Email scott.m.stein@us.pwc.com
Boy Scouts of America
National Capital Area Council
9190 Rockville Pike
Bethesda, MD 20814
301-530-9360
Capital Hospice
Development Office
6565 Arlington Boulevard, Suite 500
Falls Church, VA 22042
703-531-6209
Trinity United Methodist Church
Envisioning the Future Fund
1205 Dolley Madison Boulevard
McLean, VA 22101
703-356-3312
*Acknowledgements may be sent to the Maher Family at 6611 Jill Court, McLean, VA 22101.
Contact ALTA at 202-296-3671 or communications@alta.org.