Photo courtesy of Husch Blackwell
Leadership
Lauren Hawkins of Husch Blackwell on Navigating Complex Corporate and Aviation Law
The Springfield-based partner shares how she guides clients through high-stakes transactions, complicated regulations, and fast-moving aviation issues.
Dec 2025
Lauren Hawkins, originally from Willard, has been a partner at Husch Blackwell since 2017. After earning her degrees from Missouri State and Washington University School of Law, she started her career at Kirkland & Ellis LLP in Chicago before returning home to be close to family.
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Hawkins focuses on business and corporate law, with a specialty in mergers and acquisitions and complex commercial transactions, helping clients navigate everything from buying and selling companies to negotiating detailed commercial agreements.
Biz 417: What originally drew you to your field of law, and what has kept you energized in the field?
Lauren Hawkins: I knew from a young age that I wanted to be an attorney. My father loved to talk about all things legal and political, and he sparked my interest in the law and the kinds of transactions and decisions that shape our communities. As a dealmaker, I enjoy the strategy, problem-solving and coordination required to guide clients through these multifaceted transactions. My goal is to ensure that my clients have the tools at their disposal to protect their interests and achieve an optimal outcome.
That’s what I love about Husch Blackwell. We have an incredible team of attorneys and business professionals, with offices across the country. With over 1,000 attorneys, if a client raises an issue outside of my area of expertise, I know I can call a colleague with deep experience who can step in immediately.
Biz: What sparked your focus on business aviation and commercial airlines, and what do people often misunderstand about that work?
L.H.: My father held his pilot’s license since he was a teenager and spent 30 years as an air traffic controller, including at our home airport of SGF. As such, I had a lot of experience with aviation from a young age, and aviation has always been a huge interest of mine—though I often joke that I love everything about aviation except actually flying.
The aviation industry is highly regulated and constantly evolving. As legal counsel, we help clients navigate those regulations, negotiate contracts to protect their interests, and problem-solve across a variety of issues that arise in the industry.
In terms of what people misunderstand, our work may sound more glamorous than it is at times. For example, I handle all private charter work for a major U.S. airline, which includes complex annual negotiations with NFL, MLB and NCAA teams that are household names. But at the end of the day, it is still a normal contract negotiation, where I am often the ‘bad cop’ to protect my client, freeing up the airline so that they can focus on the business and relationship aspects of the contract with their charter clients.
Biz: What is a challenge you’ve seen repeatedly across different industries, and how do you help clients navigate it?
L.H.: A common challenge businesses face, regardless of industry, is that no single attorney can be an expert in every area of the client’s business, their industry and their applicable regulatory regime. Each client has its own set of standards and regulations applicable to its business, depending on the industry it operates in.
At Husch Blackwell, we’re fortunate to have attorneys with broad expertise in multiple specialty areas. For example, in a recent transaction, our client needed advice on many different specialty areas of the law to complete an important acquisition, including employment, benefits, tax, real estate, environmental, international trade, aviation regulatory, data privacy, ITAR compliance and others. My team was able to tap into our deep and diverse network of excellent specialists to assist the client in each of these subject matters, all within the firm. I am very blessed to work alongside excellent, experienced attorneys in just about every practice area who also have deep industry knowledge, enabling them to effectively and efficiently assist our clients. If I don't have the answer to a client’s question, I can almost guarantee that one of my colleagues does.
Biz: What do you love most about working in Springfield’s business community today?
L.H.: As much as I enjoy traveling and working with national and international clients, Springfield is home. After working in Chicago for many years, I’ve come to deeply appreciate the close-knit community we have here in the Ozarks. Despite working with such a wide range of clients, many have connections to the Springfield area, and I value the trust they place in me and my teams. Those relationships have allowed me to maintain a strong sense of connection to both my clients and this community.
Biz: What advice would you give women who want to pursue partnership or leadership roles in law?
L.H.: Women have come so far in the legal profession. My advice is to find an environment where you are supported and respected, your talents are appreciated, and where you have a long runway for growth. Seek out strong mentors, and then be one. Invest in your colleagues and help build the kind of team you’d want to rely on someday. Invest in professional development and welcome the challenges that come your way, as that’s where the real growth happens. And most importantly, love what you do. It is the passion for our work and clients that cultivates excellence.
