Aerospace & Aviation

For some organizations — such as airlines, aerospace and defense manufacturers, distribution companies, and major online retailers — aircraft are the beating heart of their business strategies. For others, airplanes, helicopters, drones, commercial travel, and aviation-related products and services are indispensable ancillary resources that enable them to achieve distinct and varied corporate objectives. For both types of organizations, Jones Walker delivers meticulous strategic advice and wide-ranging support, inspiring our clients with the wisdom and confidence that come from years of dedicated practice.

Our accomplished team of aviation and aerospace attorneys helps clients across the business spectrum better understand and address their supply chain, air travel, and related needs. Drawing from a deep well of experience in aviation law and aerospace and defense law, we recognize the challenges and opportunities that arise around aircraft, particularly when companies seek to make efficient use of these important tools through acquisitions, leases, or agreements with third-party providers.

Jones Walker’s aviation and aerospace practice includes a lawyer who is a licensed commercial helicopter and fixed-wing pilot, an aerospace engineer, a board-certified (Florida) aviation law specialist, and an adjunct professor of space law at the University of Alabama. Among other professional commitments, our team members have served as chair of the Defense Research Institute (DRI) Aviation & Aerospace Specialty Law Group and are active in the American Bar Association Forum on Air & Space Law. Jones Walker attorneys also speak frequently on drone-, aviation-, and aerospace-related events sponsored by the DRI, the Marshall Space Flight Center, and other industry organizations, and serve as faculty members and lecturers on unmanned aerial vehicles, space law, and related subjects at the University of Alabama College of Engineering.

Our clients include publicly traded and privately held corporations; high-net-worth individuals and families; family offices; not-for-profit entities and philanthropists; educational and healthcare institutions; local, state, and federal government agencies; and more.

Highly coordinated, full-spectrum legal counsel

The Jones Walker team regularly advises clients on all aspects of:

• Aircraft acquisitions, sales, and financings
• Aircraft repossessions
• Cargo delays
• Commercial contracts and distribution agreements
• Construction contracts and real estate matters
• Executive compensation and benefits
• Government contracts
• Import and export management
• Insurance coverage and underwriting
• Aviation assets and collateral (in the context of bankruptcies, restructurings, and workouts)
• Leases and charters of personal and business aircraft
• Litigation and dispute resolution
• Loans and credit facilities
• Product liability and property damage
• Tax planning and controversy