BGS Attorney Receives Minnesota State Bar Association Distinguished Service Award 2020

December 10, 2020  |  Toni Perrier

Barna, Guzy and Steffen, Ltd attorney Jeffrey S. Johnson recently received the 2020 Distinguished Service Award from the Real Property Section of the Minnesota State Bar Association (MSBA) in honor of his years of dedication and service to the bar and community. Since his admission to the bar in 1979, Jeff has been involved with the MSBA in many ways including serving on the Section Governing Council for 34 years and presenting 25 programs for Minnesota Continuing Legal Education.

When Jeff Johnson started his career at what is now Barna, Guzy & Steffen as a clerk in 1977, he could not have known that his career as an attorney would span 40 years with multiple achievements and thousands of satisfied clients along the way. Johnson was President and Chair of the Board at BGS for 24 years before stepping down in 2014 to focus more on his real estate practice in the later years of his career.  

His service to the MSBA is extensive and impressive.  As he grew in his profession he became involved in the MSBA Real Property Section in several additional ways including being a council member of the MSBA, Real Property Section from 1984-2018, and having served as the Chairperson from 1990-91.  Additional involvement with the council includes:

• Real Property Governing Council – 1984 – 2018
  • Secretary – 1988 – 1989
  • Vice Chair – 1989 – 1990
  • Chairperson – 1990 – 1991
  • Chairperson of Committee to Explore Certification – 1987 – 1989
  • Inaugural Chairperson of Real Property Certification Council –1990 – 1992
• Real Property Section Representative on Uniform Marital Property Act Study Committee – 1984 – 1985
• Real Property Section Representative on MSBA Governance Task Force – 2003-2004
• Governing Council Ad hoc Bylaw Committee 1996 – 2018
• MSBA Residential Real Estate Committee Past Chair Emeritus Member
• Represented Joint Bar Association Task Force on Relocation of Bar Association (CLE) Facilities to City Center 1998-1999
  
  

Johnson is a Certified Real Property Law Specialist by the MSBA and has extensive experience representing commercial developers, commercial construction companies, shopping center developers, and property management companies. He has consistently been selected by his peers as one of Minnesota’s top lawyers in real property law and is a member of The American College of Real Estate Lawyers.