Picture of G. Trippe Hawthorne

G. Trippe Hawthorne

Partner

Trippe Hawthorne is a partner in the Baton Rouge office of Kean Miller. He joined the firm in 2004 and practices in the construction, ADR and business litigation groups. Trippe has experience in all phases of the construction industry and in a wide variety of commercial litigation, and general litigation matters, including design and construction contracting and dispute resolution across all sectors, including industrial, commercial, public, and residential; public bidding and procurement challenges; and public and private works lien laws. Trippe has experience with administrative law and occupational licensing law, having served as General Counsel for the Louisiana State Licensing Board of Contractors. Trippe also has insight into the Federal Court system, having served as a Law Clerk to the Honorable John V. Parker, United States District Court, Middle District of Louisiana, from 1995 to 1996. He is a Fellow in the American College of Real Estate Lawyers (ACREL) and is a fellow of the Construction Lawyers Society of America. Trippe is AV-rated by Martindale-Hubbell.

Trippe served as a special advisor to the Louisiana Law Institute Security Devices Committee for its Private Works Act Revision Project and is a frequent speaker on construction and design related topics such as the Louisiana contractor's licensing law, industrial engineering and construction contracting and procurement, construction industry issues, heavily negotiated contract provisions, and public bid disputes, and on broader topics, such as diversity in the legal profession and Alternative Dispute Resolution. He is a member of the Louisiana Law Institute ADR Committee. Trippe is an arbitrator and mediator with Perry Dampf Dispute Solutions and is listed in the Louisiana Civil Mediator's Registry, maintained by the Louisiana State Bar Association Alternative Dispute Resolution section.

Away from the office, Trippe enjoys spending time with his wife and three daughters. He also enjoys participating in triathlons, working on bicycles, singing with various groups from his church, and giving back to the community.

Representative Experience
  • Representation of industrial plant owners, equipment manufacturers, and engineers before the Louisiana Professional Engineering and Land Surveying Board (LAPELS)
  • Representation of industrial and commercial owners in all phases of construction project contracting and procurement
  • Representation of a City-Parish government as owner of a telecommunications system in a construction dispute against the engineer of record and a large number of contractors
  • Representation of contractors before the Louisiana State Licensing Board of Contractors
  • Former general counsel for the Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors
  • Representation of contractors in disputes involving publicly bid contracts
  • Representation of a state commission in class action inverse condemnation litigation in a case involving hundreds of millions of dollars in alleged damages
  • Representation of various clients adverse to the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development
  • Representation of various owners, contractors, subcontractors, material suppliers, and design professionals in construction litigation and in mediations and arbitrations involving contract interpretation, performance, lien rights, and remedies
  • Substantial and significant experience in the Louisiana Private Works Act and Public Works Act
Education

Trippe earned a B.A. in Philosophy from Baylor University in 1992. He earned his J.D. in 1995 from the LSU Law Center where he was a member of the Order of the Coif and Phi Kappa Phi. Trippe is also a member of the LSU Law Center Hall of Fame, and a graduate of the NITA Advanced Trial program and the Harvard Program on Negotiation Mediation Training.

Admissions
  • Admitted, Louisiana, 1995; Texas, 2015; United States District Courts for the Eastern, Middle and Western Districts of Louisiana; United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit; United States Court of Claims
Memberships
  • Baton Rouge, Louisiana State and American Bar Associations; Louisiana Association of Defense Counsel, 1997 to present (Board of Directors, 2016 to present); Louisiana State Law Institute Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee
  • Special Advisor to the Louisiana State Law Institute Security Devices Committee, for comprehensive revision and update of the Louisiana Private Works Act, 2014 to present
    • Special Reports and Presentations to the Committee and Committee Reporter:
      • Termination of contractor for convenience as basis for notice of termination, September 8, 2017
      • Abandonment as basis for notice of termination, July 29, 2016
      • Survey of Lien Notice Statutes for 50 states, November 20, 2015
      • Jurisprudence regarding General Contractor's Lien Rights for self-performed work even in the absence of a notice of contract, November 21, 2014
Articles, Publications and Presentations
Community Service
  • Louisiana State Bar Association Citizen Lawyer Award, 2019 recipient
  • Burden Foundation: Board of Directors 2013 to present; Secretary 2015 to present
  • Friends of LSU Rural Life Museum: Board of Directors 2009 to present; Vice-Chair, 2014-2015
  • Open Air Ministries: 2007 to present; founder; director of Open Air Bike Repair
  • Friends of Open Air Ministries of Baton Rouge: Founding Director and Board of Directors Vice Chair, 2012 to present
  • Rotary Club of Baton Rouge: 2009 to present
  • A.C. Lewis YMCA: Board of Advisors, 2005-2008, President 2008; Edward D. Grant Volunteerism Award, 2008
  • LSBA Crystal Gavel Award, 2010 recipient
  • National Leadership Board, Fellowship of Christian Athletes-Endurance, 2006-2010
  • University Baptist Church: Governing Board 2012-2014 (Chair, 2014), Deacon and Sunday School Teacher, Sanctuary Choir, Grace Rising Ensemble; Men's Celebration Quartet
  • Baton Rouge Business Report's "40 Under 40," 2008
  • YMCA Rouge Runners Kids Running series: Founder and Race Director, 2006-2010