Travis Kearbey grew up on a pig farm, yet has been a partner at two major law firms, Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner and Armstrong Teasdale, where at age 40 he is the leader of the 40-lawyer employment and labor practice.
He advises employers and executives through employment law matters, ranging from litigation to complex mergers and acquisitions. He has represented elementary and secondary schools, colleges and universities throughout his career.
In addition, Kearbey has counseled clients extensively on legal issues surrounding Covid-19, writing more than 20 advisories and conducting 10 webinars since late February, guiding clients through this volatile time.
You had an unconventional upbringing for a future big-firm law partner, didn’t you? I grew up in the middle of nowhere, on a pig farm on a dirt road just outside a little town, Ellsinore, Missouri, with 360-some-odd people when I lived there. It was very rural, in one of the poorest areas in the state. My family all lived and came from there and still live there. My dad, up until age 10, had no running water or indoor plumbing. I’m a family outlier for having left.
When did you leave? I graduated from East Carter High School in a class of 62. Right out of high school, I enrolled in a nearby junior college, Three Rivers College. I was the first in my family to go to college and my family was nervous. In a foreshadowing of my career as a lawyer, I negotiated a deal with my family: I would stay for a year and they would pay for my final three years at Missouri State.
Why? I’ve always had an eagerness to learn and wanted to do something more than spend my life in a rural town. I saw education as the only way out. Growing up, I had a pretty narrow set of opportunities. Going away to school significantly broadened that set of opportunities.
How did you like Missouri State? I loved it. There were a lot of first-generation students like me. I felt comfortable, while still getting exposure to a large-campus experience. I majored in English and professional writing.
Why law? When I went to college, graduate school was not an option in my mind. I didn’t know any lawyers or doctors, other than my pediatrician. My professors and the woman I eventually married convinced me I could go on to graduate school. Law school seemed a natural fit for me, given my love for reading, writing and research. I took the LSAT exam and did better than I expected.
Why Vanderbilt Law School? Nashville is fantastic, so much energy, and the Southern culture was appealing. The people are so welcoming and kind.
How did your law career progress? While I was in law school, I was a summer associate at Bryan Cave, where I joined full time in 2006. For a year, I went in-house at Express Scripts in 2010 and 2011. I went back to Bryan Cave and became a partner in 2014. I joined Armstrong Teasdale last year.
Why did you switch to Armstrong Teasdale? I loved Bryan Cave, but I found Armstrong Teasdale to be very entrepreneurial. I was taken with the people I met at the firm. And the firm is investing in a growing employment and labor practice. It gives me a chance to focus on my higher education practice. Armstrong Teasdale represents a large number of colleges and universities.
What do you do at the firm? When I joined last year, I was made deputy head of the employment and labor practice. As of earlier this year, I was made the leader, supervising 40 lawyers across the country.
What do your parents make of all this? They are proud of me, though they probably wish I was attracted to a career that kept me closer to home.
What's the trait that has most contributed to your success? Humility. I never approach anything as though I am entitled to it. Growing up, hard work was not only expected, it was necessary.
What's your favorite book of all time? "Grapes of Wrath."
What is your favorite place in St. Louis? The pandemic has revealed to me that my favorite place is at home with my family.
Favorite restaurant? Truffles.
What's your favorite getaway? We love Innsbrook, where we bought a home a couple of years ago.
If you could have dinner with anyone, living or dead, who would it be? Kurt Vonnegut. I love his satirical look at life. I enjoy the humor he brought to his work.
What's one thing about which you say to yourself, "maybe one day?" Maybe I'd like to spend more time traveling the world.
More about Travis Kearbey
Title: partner, Armstrong Teasdale
Age: 40
Grew up: Ellsinore, Missouri
Education: Missouri State University, formerly Southwest Missouri State, 2003, and Vanderbilt Law School, 2006
Family: Wife, Julie, and three children, ages 6 to 10.