The POWER List: Lauren P. DeSantis-Then

Polsinelli, St. Louis-Washington, D.C.

In Washington, D.C., Lauren DeSantis-Then built a law practice focused on white-collar litigation that continues to serve clients from her hometown of St. Louis.

DeSantis-Then obtained her law degree from Duke University in 2006. After law school, she joined Polsinelli as an associate attorney, and in 2013 she became a shareholder of the firm. In 2017, she moved from the firm’s D.C. office to St. Louis, although she still retains an office in D.C.

She represented Navnoor Kang, the former head of the third-largest pension fund in the United States, who in 2017 pleaded guilty in federal court in New York to steering $2 billion in trades in exchange for drugs, prostitutes and vacations. He was sentenced to 21 months in prison in 2018.

Additionally, she has defended health care providers in whistleblower suits under the False Claims Act. She has represented trade associations in litigation and regulatory proceedings before the U.S. Department of Energy and obtained a favorable settlement for a beverage-vending manufacturer facing large fines from the DOE.

Outside of her practice, she is an acclaimed food writer. DeSantis-Then is the author of “Capital Cooking Cookbook,” published in 2010, and founder of the D.C.-based public television show and blog of the same name.