Kristin Hanson grew up in Littleton, Massachusetts and graduated from Concord Academy in Concord, Massachusetts in 1966. She attended Bennington College and graduated from the University of Wisconsin, Madison in 1971 with a B.A. in English. She attended graduate school in History of Art at the Kansas University in Lawrence, Kansas during 1972-3. In 1978 she entered Law School at St. Mary's University where she received her Juris Doctor degree in 1981. As a third year student, Kristin Hanson was president of the Women's Bar Association. She was a member of Delta Theta Phi legal fraternity.

Ms. Hanson was licensed by the Supreme Court of Texas to practice law in May of 1981 and has been in private practice in San Antonio since May, 1981. Ms. Hanson has been a member of San Antonio Bar Association committees on Lawyer Referral, Fee Disputes. She has been a member of the College of the State Bar of Texas since 1993. In 1996, Kidshare of San Antonio presented her with the Family Lawyer of the Year Award.