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Attorney Danielle Hawkes

Photo of Danielle Hawkes - Danielle Hawkes Attorney at Law Salt Lake City, UtahDanielle is the owner of Hawkes Legal Services DBA Hawkes Family Law. She is a solo practitioner in family law advocacy. Danielle received her law degree in 2010 from the University of Utah, S.J. Quinney College of Law.

Danielle frequently speaks regarding family law in Utah as well as LGBT rights and legal strategies. In 2021-22, Danielle developed and advocated for an inaugural year-long series of family law education sessions for judges around the state, a program that has been extended for at least a second year as of 2023. Once approved, she created a sub-committee of the Family Law Executive Committee and led that committee through the full implementation of the series. In 2015 she spoke in front of approximately 200 Utah judges giving a legal update on LGBT issues at the Utah Judicial Institute. She was asked to return and give a similar talk to the Utah Justice Court Judges at their conference in 2017 and then again for the judges in 2020. In 2021, she gave a diversity presentation to all of the Family Law Commissioners at their annual retreat. She has given similar presentations for several other family law groups in the state. She has ranked as a top 10 under 40 in Utah by the National Academy of Family Law Attorneys. She has also been named to Utah’s Legal Elite by Utah Business Magazine as  well as a Mountain States Rising Star by Super Lawyers Magazine for several years. Danielle has served on the board of the Family Law Executive Committee, at the Utah State Bar, including sitting as secretary, vice-chair, and chair for one (1) year each. She also serves on the board of Lawyers Helping Lawyers at the Utah State Bar. Danielle served a six (6) year term on the Board of Directors for the ACLU of Utah, which included one year as vice-chair and two years as the chair of the Board. Danielle has volunteered on the Pro Se Calendars at the courts since the inception of that program.

After graduating from law school Danielle served a one-year fellowship in Washington DC with Georgetown Law and the Law Students for Reproductive Justice working in women’s and immigrants’ rights with the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health.

During law school, Danielle was a staff member of the S.J. Quinney College of Law’s Journal of Law and Family Studies where she published two notes. The first, Locking up Children: Lessons from the T. Don Hutto Family Detention Center, explores the emerging trend of detaining immigrant families, including very young children, in private for profit detention facilities. The second, Elective Surgery: When Parental and Medical Opinion Supersedes a Child’s Right to Choose, discusses discretionary medical procedures for children including hysterectomies for physically disabled children, cosmetic surgery for children with Down’s syndrome, cochlear implants, reparative therapy, and psycho-altering drugs. In addition, she competed in the Pace National Environmental Law Moot Court Competition where she won two best oralist awards.

Danielle served as the student coordinator for the Guadalupe Legal Clinic, a low income legal clinic, and was a co-founder of Rainbow Law, a free legal clinic focusing on LGBT law in Salt Lake City, and as the president of OutLaws, S.J. Quinney’s queer student group. She also served as a legal intern at the American Civil Liberties Union of Utah (ACLU of Utah) and worked as a law clerk for Strindberg & Scholnick, LLC, an employment discrimination law firm.

Upon graduation from law school, Danielle received the Outstanding Law Graduate of the S.J. Quinney College of Law Award from the National Association of Women Lawyers and a runner up award from the National LGBT Bar Association. Before attending law school Danielle lived in São Paulo, Brazil for one year as a Rotary exchange student, served as an intern at the Brazilian embassy in Washington, D.C., and worked as a senior business analyst in the insurance industry.

Resume: Danielle Hawkes, Esq.

Licensing

  • Utah State Bar
  • United States District Court for the District of Utah

Memberships and Board Positions

  • Family Law Executive Committee of the Utah State Bar (2017-Present)
  • ACLU of Utah Board Member (2015 – Present)
  • Association of Family and Conciliation Courts (AFCC) (2019 – Present)
  • Aldon J. Anderson American Inn of Court Member (2014 – 2018)
  • The American Military Partners Association, National Advisory Panel (2011-2012)

Awards

  • Silver in Family Law Lawyer Category (2nd Place), Salt City Best, The Salt Lake Tribune 2022
  • Utah Legal Elite by Utah Business Magazine, 2022
  • Gold in Family Law Lawyer Category (1st Place), Salt City Best, The Salt Lake Tribune 2021
  • Mountain States Rising Star by Super Lawyers Magazine, 2020
  • Mountain States Rising Star by Super Lawyers Magazine, 2019
  • Mountain States Rising Star by Super Lawyers Magazine, 2018
  • Mountain States Rising Star by Super Lawyers Magazine, 2017
  • Top 10 Attorneys under 40, National Academy of Family Law Attorneys, 2017
  • Utah Legal Elite by Utah Business Magazine, 2016
  • Mountain States Rising Star by Super Lawyers Magazine, 2016
  • Best Lawyer – Salt Lake, by Q Magazine, 2014
  • Outstanding Law Graduate of S.J. Quinney College of Law from the National Association of Women Lawyers, Spring 2010
  • National LGBT Bar Association’s Student Leadership Award Runner-UP, 2010
  • Twice named best oralist in the Pace National Environmental Moot Court Competition, 2010
  • CALI Award in Family Law Practice, Spring 2010
  • S.J. Quinney College of Law Leadership Initiative, Spring 2009 and Fall 2009
  • Salt Lake County Pro Bono Award, Fall 2009
  • Alonzo Watson, Jr. Award, Fall 2009
  • Service Scholarship Recipient, Utah Minority Bar Association, Spring 2008

Publications

Presentations

  • Annual Utah State Court Judge’s Conference, Moderated the Question and Answer Session on Family Law Issues, 2022
  • Utah State Bar, Annual Family Law Seminar, Case Law Update, 2020
  • Utah State Bar, Annual Family Law Seminar, Alimony: Navigating the Evolving Landscape, 2019
  • Utah State Bar, CLE, Therapeutic Remedies in Family Law, 2019
  • Utah Psychological Association Seminar, Custody Evaluations, 2019
  • Mediation Brown Bag, Special Considerations in Domestic Violence Mediation, 2018
  • Family Law Bar Section CLE, Alimony and Child Support: Tips and Tricks, 2018
  • Fall Forum, The Soul of a Lawyer, 2018
  • Domestic Violence Community Discussion, Domestic Violence Legal Update, 2018
  • National ACLU Leadership Conference, Building a Leadership Program, 2017
  • Justice Court Judge’s Spring Conference, LGBT Legal Update, 2017
  • Community Discussion Group, The 14th Amendment, 2017
  • Screening and Panel Discussion, The Future of TRAP Laws – Panelist, 2016
  • Legal Clinic Training, Trans Legal Update for Practitioners, 2016
  • CLE Presenter, Family Law Legal Update, 2016
  • Alternative Dispute Resolution Conference, Mediating with LGBT Clients, 2016
  • Utah State Bar Fall Forum, LGBT Law Update, 2015
  • Panelist, Rights of Transgender People, 2014
  • BYU Local Government Annual Conference, LGBT Law, 2014
  • Women’s Rights Panel, 2013
  • Utah State Bar, Young Lawyers Section, Mentoring Marathon Presenter, 2013
  • Solo Firm Practice, Starting a Solo Practice, 2013
  • Monthly CLE Presenter, LGBT Employment Law, 2013
  • Law For Transgender Individuals, 2013
  • Know Your Rights Seminar, 2013
  • BYU Law Presentation, LGBT Law, 2013
  • BYU Local Government Annual Conference, LGBT Law, 2013
  • Genderevolution, Legal Name and Gender/Sex Change, 2012
  • Civil Liberties and Public Policy Annual Conference, Progressive Visions for Immigrant Rights, 2011
  • Harvard Law School, Embedded Bodies: Reproductive Justice in Social Context, 2010