Chief Legal Officer: Tom Whittaker

PUBLISHED JANUARY 2025

His father was an investment banker who, in his spare time, did some home remodeling along Ward Parkway, so young Tom Whittaker had early exposure to construction. During his college years, his interest in math led him to consider engineering as a career path. Put the two interests together and what have you got today? 

If you said “lawyer,” you win. Although it’s not like he abandoned either of those early interests on his way to a J.D., since for the past 31 years, he’s been with JE Dunn Construction, where he’s been chief legal officer since 2010. In that capacity, he’s been able to work on construction projects like he’d envisioned as a kid without being on a job site.

“Growing up, one of my best friends and I would ride our bikes to commercial project sites,” Whittaker recalls. “We would talk to some of the equipment operators about what they were doing.” He was sufficiently inspired to pursue an engineering degree, but his first stop—TCU—didn’t have an engineering program. “When I was looking to transfer to a school with an engineering curriculum, I discovered I could combine my interests in construction and engineering,” Whittaker says. His dad’s residency on the Kansas side meant in-state tuition at K-State, so he transferred and pushed hard with the academic calendar to finish within four years, including one stint with fall, Christmas break, spring, spring break and summer courses.

When he transferred, though, he brought along something he’d picked up in Fort Worth and something from the family tree, both of which led him to law school at UMKC.

“I’m sure it started with my grandfather and a general awareness of his love for the law and the success he achieved as an attorney, a judge and later as a justice,” says Whittaker (the federal courthouse here, in fact, is named for Grad-Dad). “That general awareness became a real interest because of a business law class at TCU. The professor was a practicing attorney in Fort Worth. We would read rulings (court opinions) and then discuss the cases and their impact on business, people, and society. He was an inspirational instructor.”

While in law school, he snagged a job at a boutique Plaza-area construction law firm, leveraging his background in the field to work as a clerk. “I was able to do the legal work of a clerk but also use my technical construction skills to help the attorneys in the firm with the issues on their cases,” Whittaker says. “That experience provided me with connections to many of the attorneys in Kansas City’s construction bar. I truly enjoyed all my classes in law school, particularly related to trying cases—evidence and civil procedure—but my construction background gave me an advantage.”

His leadership today draws in large part from the values he learned at home growing up, chiefly the value of a strong work ethic. “My father would put on a suit every day, leave with his briefcase in hand, and be home in time for dinner,” Whittaker says. “Occasionally, I would tag along to his office with one or more of my siblings on a Saturday morning. We also listened to the stories about his father (our grandfather) growing up on the farm in Troy, Kan., and moving to Kansas City by himself to attend high school and law school at night while he clerked for a law firm during the day. Hard work and preparation illustrated how to create a foundation for later success. Another value came from the same stories: there is nothing more important than the facts. Know the facts. Finally, these anecdotes were part of our family. The importance of a strong family has always been present.”

His legal career began by addressing disputes related to the construction and design industries, he says, “and of course, I knew of JE Dunn. At the time, the company had one attorney. My background in construction and law, as well as my values similar to those of the Dunn family, made it a natural fit.”

In the years since, more than one project, case, or issue has produced an evolution in the growth and complexity of the company, he says, “and I have needed to grow and evolve to support the company’s needs. I could not have imagined the scope and breadth of matters I would become involved in when I started. My career has become more than helping people with legal issues and addressing risks in business.” 

“At the same time,” he says, “the company has always supported its employees being involved in their community and in the industry. I have had many leadership roles in other organizations, and that has helped me develop my leadership and skills, which I’ve been able to use at JE Dunn. Now, building teams to help lead the company as it starts its next 100 years is just as important as buildings and the business.”