Johnston Burkhardt

Attorney

CONTACT

935 Gravier Street, Suite 1800
New Orleans, LA 70112
Phone: (504) 324-2141
Fax: (504) 534-8961
Email: johnston@snw.law

PRACTICE AREAS

  • Real Estate Transactions & Litigation
  • Divorce & Marital Agreements
  • Family Law and Interdictions
  • Family Law Mediation
  • Estate Planning and Successions
  • Criminal Expungements
  • General Counsel Services
  • General Litigation

Johnston Burkhardt joined Sternberg, Naccari & White in 2021. His diverse practice focuses on real estate litigation and transactions, family law litigation and mediation, successions and estate planning, and general litigation. Johnston is also a real estate title attorney and works closely with the firm’s associated title company, Quality Title. Johnston is a Child Custody and Visitation Mediator, and he is listed on the LSBA Alternative Dispute Resolution Section's Mediator Registry.


A lifelong New Orleanian, Johnston’s interest in the law began when he was selected in high school for the Louisiana State Bar Association student internship program. He graduated from Louisiana State University with a Bachelor of Science in General Business, and then obtained his Juris Doctor and Graduate Diploma in Comparative Law from the Louisiana State University Paul M. Hebert Law Center, where he served as Senior Articles Editor for the Journal of Energy Law and Resources, Volume VII. 

Johnston is associated with the Louisiana, Orleans, and Jefferson Bar Associations and the St. Thomas Moore Catholic Lawyers Association. He is a former “40 under 40” honoree for the Youth Empowerment Program.


While in law school at LSU, Johnston served as legal extern for the Hon. Erin Wilder-Doomes, a Magistrate Judge at the United States District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana. He also clerked during his 2L summer for the Honorable Fredericka H. Wicker at the Louisiana Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal. 


Notably, while a law student at LSU, Johnston was SNW’s very first law clerk. He returned to the firm as an attorney after practicing family law in downtown New Orleans. Johnston is an accomplished artist, enjoys playing tennis, traveling, and cooking. While studying for the bar and preparing to practice law, Johnston was the campaign manager for a prominent Judge running for an open seat on the Louisiana Supreme Court.

  • Bar Admissions

    • Louisiana (all state courts)

  • Education

    • Louisiana State University Paul M. Hebert Law Center, J.D./D.C.L.
    • Louisiana State University, B.S

  • Community and Professional Involvement

    • Louisiana State Bar Association
    • New Orleans Bar Association
    • Jefferson Bar Association
    • Youth Empowerment Program 40 Under 40 Cohort
    • St. Thomas Moore Catholic Lawyers Association

MORE ABOUT JOHNSTON

Quieting Title After a Louisiana Tax Sale

By Johnston Burkhardt • October 24, 2025
Buying property at a tax sale can be a smart way to acquire real estate, but your work isn’t finished when the gavel falls. What you purchase is tax sale title—a limited, conditioned ownership interest that still allows the former owner and other interested parties to challenge the sale or redeem the property for a period of time. To unlock full, marketable ownership, you typically need to quiet title (also called confirming the tax sale). In most cases involving immovable property (real estate), the former owner has three years from the recording of the tax sale deed/certificate to redeem their ownership. Louisiana law requires strict pre-sale and post-sale notice to owners and other “interested persons” (mortgage holders, lienholders, heirs, etc.). Defects in notice can jeopardize the sale—even after the redemption period—on due-process grounds. Why Quieting Title Is Necessary Even after the redemption period expires, title insurers and lenders usually won’t treat your tax sale deed as “clean.” A quiet title judgment cuts off redemption rights and other claims by the previous owner. It also resolves due-process concerns by demonstrating you identified and served all interested parties, and it creates insurable, marketable title so you can finance, sell, or develop the property with confidence. Quieting title is achieved through a civil suit against the previous owner and providing mandated notices to all “interested persons.” Serving interested parties is typically the biggest challenge in tax sales, as the previous owners could be deceased or unable to be located. Once the judgment to quiet title is granted, it gets recorded in the conveyance records to put the public on notice that you have full ownership of the property. Quieting title after a Louisiana tax sale is an intricate procedure that requires an experienced real estate attorney. Our firm regularly guides investors, developers, and individuals through quieting tax sale title to deliver marketable, insurable ownership. If you bought at a tax sale or are considering it, contact Johnston Burkhardt at 504-313-4199 or johnston@snw.law to evaluate your path to clean title.

What Happens When Someone Dies Without a Will in Louisiana? Intestate Succession Explained

By Johnston Burkhardt • October 8, 2025
What Happens When Someone Dies Without a Will in Louisiana? Intestate Succession Explained