Below is a brief Q&A with a member of NOSSCR’s Board of Directors, 4th Circuit Representative Christine Burnside.

Christine Burnside grew up in Wilmington, NC before attending UNC Chapel Hill for both undergrad and law school. She graduated from UNC Law in 2012 and began practicing Social Security law at the Deuterman Law Group the same year.

Christine has been certified by the North Carolina Bar Board of Legal Specialization as a specialist in Social Security disability law since 2019.  Christine is passionate about helping her clients and mentoring newer claimants’ reps.

She is proud to serve as a co-chair of NOSSCR NextGen, and was recently elected to the NOSSCR Board of Directors as a NOSSCR Fourth Circuit Representative.

What’s the best book you’ve read lately?

I read exclusively fantasy with an occasional cozy mystery thrown in, and I’m a few books behind my Goodreads goal of 75 books in 2023. If I had to choose one from 2023 to recommend, it would be the Shades of Magic series by V.E. Schwab.

What’s your favorite hobby?

I love to act and I participate in community theatre when I have the time. I’m performing in a short play called Trance Formation during Triad Playwrights Theatre’s Short Play Festival in October.  

What type of food could you eat every day? 

Food that I’m not responsible for cooking!

When you were a kid, did you want to be a lawyer when you grew up? If not, what did you want to be?

I wanted to be a lawyer for most of my childhood, maybe it was growing up in the town where Matlock was filmed? I joined my high school’s mock trial team in the first few weeks of my freshman year and I’ve never looked back.

What’s something special to you about NOSSCR or Social Security disability law? 

I feel truly privileged to practice Social Security disability law because we get to see the difference that we make in our clients’ lives on a daily basis. Its not an abstract difference, it is a concrete change- sometimes it is only our zealous advocacy that stands between a client and homelessness. I work in a high volume firm and the pace of my work can feel stressful, but the impact that I can make in my client’s life makes it all worth it.