Everett M. Johnson

Everett M. Johnson is a shareholder and co-chair of the Public Finance Team and the firm's Equal Opportunity Committee at Wilentz, Goldman & Spitzer, P.A.  Mr. Johnson has concentrated his practice in the area of public finance.

Mr. Johnson has extensive experience in the issuance of competitive and negotiated tax-exempt and taxable obligations, including general obligation bonds and notes, revenue bonds, redevelopment area bonds, energy savings improvement bonds, variable rate demand bonds, auction-rate securities, lease-purchase financings, tax and revenue anticipation notes, tax appeal refunding notes, emergency notes, special emergency notes, pooled loan transactions, and conduit financings.

Mr. Johnson represents numerous public entities throughout the State of New Jersey as bond counsel, including the County of Hudson, the County of Mercer, the City of Newark, the City of Jersey City, the City of East Orange, the City of Trenton, the City of Plainfield, the City of Orange Township, the Borough of Red Bank, the City of Long Branch, the City of Pleasantville, the Town of Dover, the Township of Bloomfield, the Township of Franklin (Somerset County), the Township of Hillside, the Borough of North Plainfield and various other municipalities.  He also represents numerous county and municipal authorities as bond counsel, including the Parking Authority of the City of Newark, the Franklin Township Sewerage Authority, the Somerset County Improvement Authority, the New Brunswick Parking Authority, the Joint Meeting of Essex and Union Counties, the Neptune Sewerage Authority, and the Housing Authority of the City of New Brunswick.  Mr. Johnson has represented the State of New Jersey as Bond Counsel on various bond issues, including the conversion of Auction Rate Bonds to Fixed Rate Bonds for its Business Employment Incentive Program.  Additionally, Mr. Johnson has served as Special Tax Counsel to the Newark Downtown Core Redevelopment Corporation.  Mr. Johnson has represented various investment banks as underwriter’s counsel or placement counsel, including Morgan Stanley, NW Capital Markets Inc., Stifel, Wachovia Bank, National Association, Loop Capital Markets, LLC, Siebert, Williams Shank & Company, LLC, and New Capital Markets, LLC.  Mr. Johnson also serves as redevelopment counsel to the Township of Bloomfield, the City of Plainfield, the Township of West Orange, the Township of Hillside, and the Franklin Township Redevelopment Agency.

Mr. Johnson is also a Certified Public Accountant.  Prior to attending law school, he worked as a tax senior for Arthur Andersen, L.L.P. where he provided tax preparation services and tax planning to high net-worth individuals, corporations, partnerships, and limited liability companies.

In June of 2003, Mr. Johnson was appointed by Governor James E. McGreevey to serve as a Commissioner on the Essex County Board of Taxation, where he currently serves as the President of the Essex County Board of Taxation.  In September of 2004, Mr. Johnson completed the Leadership Newark Fellowship Program, which has the primary purpose of developing leaders in the City of Newark and the surrounding communities.  Mr. Johnson currently sits on the Board of Greater Oaks Legacy Charter School, United Community Corporation, and the New Jersey Children's Foundation.  He is also a founding member and the Chairman of Black Americans Lobbying for Leadership of Tomorrow, a political action committee created for the purpose of supporting elected officials and candidates whose policies and positions benefit, serve and empower people of African descent.

Mr. Johnson has served as a frequent speaker at the National Association of Bond Lawyers “Essentials” conference and at the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education.

Mr. Johnson was awarded Leadership Newark’s Outstanding Corporate Partner Award, the Robert Lee Carter Legacy Award from the NJ State Conference of the NAACP, the ScoutReach “Good Scout” Award from the Northern New Jersey Council of the Boy Scouts of America, and recognized for his contributions to the economic development of the City of Newark by the Brick City Development Corporation. In 2021, Mr. Johnson was named to the list of Diverse Attorneys of the Year by the New Jersey Law Journal for “advancing the cause of diversity” and “commitment to the law and to advancing the legal profession.” Mr. Johnson was named as an honoree of NJBIZ’s 2022 Leaders in Law. He was also selected for inclusion in New Jersey Super Lawyers “Rising Star” list in 2006 and 2010. Since 2025, Mr. Johnson has been selected for inclusion in the Best Lawyers in America list for Public Finance Law. 

Super Lawyers® (http://www.superlawyers.com/about/selection_process_detail.html) is published by Thomson Reuters.

The New Jersey Law Journal Diverse Attorneys of the Year (https://www.law.com/njlawjournal/2021/10/05/law-journal-announces-diverse-attorneys-of-the-year-2/) is published by the ALM Media Properties, LLC. Nominations for Law Journal recognitions come from outside submissions and honorees were selected by a panel of editorial staff.

NJBIZ Leaders in Law list (https://njbiz.com/njbiz-announces-2022-leaders-in-law-honorees/) is published by BridgeTower Media. Chosen by a panel of independent judges experienced in the justice system, honorees were selected based on their “outstanding dedication to their occupation and to their communities.”

Best Lawyers in America® (https://www.bestlawyers.com/methodology) is published by Best Lawyers.

A description of the selection process may be accessed via the above link. The aforementioned organization is a private peer review organization, not court-specific, public certification vehicles. No aspect of this advertisement has been submitted to or approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.