CERTIFICATIONS

                                                                    Exhibit 31-1

I, L. Wayne Pearson certify that:

1.   I have  reviewed  this  quarterly  report  on  Form  10-QSB  of  Southcoast
     Financial Corporation:

2.   Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of
     a material  fact or omit to state a  material  fact  necessary  to make the
     statements made, in light of the circumstances  under which such statements
     were made,  not  misleading  with  respect  to the  period  covered by this
     report;

3.   Based on my  knowledge,  the  financial  statements,  and  other  financial
     information  included  in  this  report,  fairly  present  in all  material
     respects the financial  condition,  results of operations and cash flows of
     the small  business  issuer as of, and for,  the periods  presented in this
     report;

4.   The small business issuer's other certifying officers and I are responsible
     for  establishing  and maintaining  disclosure  controls and procedures (as
     defined  in  Exchange  Act Rules  13a-15(e)  and  15d-15(e))  for the small
     business issuer and have:

     a)   designed  such  disclosure  controls  and  procedures,  or caused such
          disclosure   controls  and   procedures  to  be  designed   under  our
          supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the small
          business  issuer,  including its  consolidated  subsidiaries,  is made
          known to us by others within those entities,  particularly  during the
          period in which this report is being prepared;

     c)   evaluated the effectiveness of the small business issuer's  disclosure
          controls and procedures  and presented in this report our  conclusions
          about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures,  as
          of the  end of the  period  covered  by  this  report  based  on  such
          evaluation; and

     d)   disclosed  in this  report any change in the small  business  issuer's
          internal  control over financial  reporting  that occurred  during the
          small business issuer's most recent fiscal quarter (the small business
          issuer's  fourth fiscal  quarter in the case of an annual report) that
          has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect,
          the small business issuer's internal control over financial reporting;
          and

5.   The small business issuer's other certifying officers and I have disclosed,
     based on our most recent  evaluation  of internal  control  over  financial
     reporting,  to the small business issuer's auditors and the audit committee
     of the small business  issuer's  board of directors (or persons  performing
     the equivalent functions):

     a)   all significant  deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or
          operation  of internal  control  over  financial  reporting  which are
          reasonably  likely to  adversely  affect the small  business  issuer's
          ability   to  record,   process,   summarize   and  report   financial
          information; and

     b)   any fraud, whether or not material,  that involves management or other
          employees who have a significant  role in the small business  issuer's
          internal control over financial reporting.



Date: November 12 , 2003                    /s/ L. Wayne Pearson
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                                                L. Wayne Pearson
                                                Chief Executive Officer