Linda F. Johnson
managing attorney
Linda Funke Johnson has been practicing law since 1985 and has extensive practical and theoretical experience in the areas of Guardianship, Estate Planning and Administration, Tax, Real Estate, and Small Business Law. Her credentials include chairing committees and sections for the North Carolina State Bar and the North Carolina Bar Association, teaching Continuing Law Education courses, and educational publications. She is one of 143 North Carolina Bar Certified Legal Specialists in Estate Planning and Probate in the state, and the only one in the Fuquay-Varina area. Linda is the sole shareholder of Senter, Stephenson, Johnson, PA.
Linda is an attorney who genuinely cares about her clients and her community. As a trusted attorney in the Wake County court system, she is often appointed by the court as a public administrator. In these instances, she and manages the finances of individuals who cannot make their own financial decisions and oversees administration of estates that have gone awry.
Linda has volunteered within her community as everything from Chair of the Fuquay-Varina Downtown Association Board to the Spring Chicken for the annual Easter Candy Hop and as The Grinch at Downtown sleigh rides. Her current community project is the Grief Share at her church, which she runs with her husband, Steve. Her husband owns and operates a truck company servicing the Southeastern United States and is also a chaplain. They live in the Fuquay-Varina area (with more dogs than Steve would like.)
Education
- Bachelor of Science, Fairfield University, Business Management and German, 1982
- Juris Doctorate, Quinnipiac College School of Law, 1985
Professional Certifications and Designations
- Connecticut State Bar, 1985
- Hawaii State Bar, 1993
- North Carolina State Bar, 1995
- North Carolina State Bar, Legal Specialization Estate Planning and Probate, 2007
- American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, Fellow, 2018-Present
- Court Appointed Public Administrator
Legal Memberships
- North Carolina State Bar
- Specialty Certification Committee for Estate Planning and Probate Law; Member (2008-Present); Vice Chair (2010-2011 and 2015); Co-Chair (2012 and 2014); Chair (2013)
- North Carolina Bar Association/ Foundation
- Member: Sections on Real Property, Probate, Property Tax, and Elder Law (1997-Present)
- Board of Governors (2019-2022)
- Estate Planning and Fiduciary Law Section; Chair (2017-2018); Treasurer (2015); Secretary (2014); Council Member (2010-2014)
- Legislative Committee; Member (2011-Present); Subcommittee: Living Probate and Guardianship (2015-2017); Vice Chair (2013-2015)
- Co-Chair, Legislative Committee of the Estate Planning and Fiduciary Law Section (2015-2017)
- “The Will and the Way”, NCBA Estate Planning and Fiduciary Law Section Newsletter; Co-Editor (2009-2011)
- Chair, Estate Planning and Fiduciary Law Section (2017-2018)
- Ad Hoc Committee: Fundraising and Planning of the Annual Meeting; Chair (2013-2014); Vice-Chair (2015); Member (2011-Present)
- Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee (2016-Present)
Civic Memberships
- North Carolina Land Records Task Force – Secretary of State, Raleigh; Member (2017-Present)
- Wake County Attorney Breast Cancer Support Group (2005-Present)
- Linus Foundation
- Volunteer, Pro Bono Committee of the North Carolina Bar Association, Wake County Hospice Project (1998-Present)
- Member of Board of Directors, Fuquay-Varina High School Theatre Patrons (2009-2012)
- Louisburg College Board of Trustees, Louisburg, NC; Audit Committee Member (2018-Present), Trustee (2016-Present)
Publications
- The Will and the Way
- “Timing is Everything” (May, 2018)
- “Administration of the Insolvent Estate AKA: ‘You Can’t Get Honey Out of a Rock’” (April, 2017)
- “Estate Planning and Tax Basis Planning” (March, 2015)
- “Portability and Planning, the New Frontier of Estate Planning” (March, 2013)
- “Estate and Gift Planning under the 2010 Tax Planning Act” (May, 2009)
- “Attorney in fact, Guardian of the Estate and Real Estate Contract” (May, 2009)
- “Spotlight on the Legislative Committee” (various years)
- North Carolina Estate Administration Manual Supplemental Sixth Edition (2006/ 2008)
- Chapter Editor for North Carolina Estate Administration Manual (2006-Present)
Community Involvement
- Wake Chapel Church’s Grief Share (2019-Present)
- Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure
Sisters of Hope Breast Cancer Dinner Club (2004-Present) - Hospice of Wake County; Volunteer Attorney (1997-Present)
- Arts Committee, Fuquay-Varina, NC; Member (2018-Present)
- Wills for Heroes Program (2008)
- Wake Chapel Church’s Angel Food Ministries (2005-2011)
Awards
- Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Rated, Preeminent, Highest Possible Rating in Both Legal Ability & Ethical Standards (Attorney Voted)
- Lawyers of Distinction, Excellence in Estate Planning (2018)
- NC Bar Foundation; 2017 Continuing Legal Education Volunteer of the Year (2017)
- Business Support of the Arts Award, United Arts Council of Raleigh and Wake County and the Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce (2014)
- Voted Best Attorney by the Fuquay-Varina Independent (2001, 2008, 2011, and 2012)
- Citizen of the Year; Fuquay-Varina Chamber of Commerce (2011)