NAR Top Lawyer Exits Real Estate Trade Group Amid Antitrust Woes

The National Association of Realtors, a trade group representing commercial and residential real estate agents and brokers, confirmed Tuesday that its longtime chief legal officer Katherine “Katie” Johnson will step down after 17 years with the Chicago-based organization.

“We are grateful for her service,” NAR said in a statement about Johnson, who joined the body as an associate counsel in 2007 and was promoted to general counsel in 2014. “Katie has spent the bulk of her career committed to fulfilling NAR’s mission to make homeownership a reality for all Americans.”

Johnson’s exit comes during a turbulent time for US home sales, where a 6% sales commission has until recently been considered a mainstay of the market. That system has been subject to antitrust scrutiny from the Justice Department and private plaintiffs, the latter of which a year ago won a $1.8 billion verdict at trial against NAR and several large residential real estate brokerages, who were accused of colluding with one another to keep agent commissions high.

NAR began implementing some changes in August after the trade group and its lawyers from Cooley and ArentFox Schiff agreed to a $418 million antitrust settlement in March with home sellers in a lawsuit filed in a federal court in Kansas City, Missouri. Some key US housing market observers, such as former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers, publicly called the deal a win for consumers. The antitrust accord is set for judicial approval in November.

While NAR has had success in some other antitrust-related cases, rank-and-file members issued a public letter last year demanding management changes at the nonprofit, including calling for the ouster of Johnson and other senior staffers. NAR named a new permanent chief executive officer last month in Nykia Wright, who was initially hired on an interim basis in November 2023.

Johnson, who began her legal career at Chicago’s Gardiner Koch Weisberg & Wrona, was elevated from general counsel to legal chief at NAR last year. Lesley Muchow, a deputy general counsel and vice president of legal affairs and antitrust compliance at NAR, was also promoted to general counsel.

The organization didn’t disclose a timeline for Johnson’s departure—she also holds the title of chief member experience officer—but said that as it transitions her legal duties “our priority is ensuring business continuity and remaining laser focused on shepherding NAR through this time of significant industry change.”

NAR’s most recent federal tax filing shows that Johnson earned more than $1 million in total compensation during fiscal 2022, a year in which it also paid more than $4.2 million to Cooley. Schiff Hardin, a predecessor law firm to ArentFox Schiff, received nearly $2.6 million from NAR in 2021.

HousingWire, a real estate trade publication, first reported the news of Johnson’s pending departure. She didn’t respond to a request for comment.