Born into an influential Liberal family, Lippens practiced as a lawyer before entering local politics in his native province of East Flanders.

After resigning from the post following disagreement with the colonial administration in Belgium, Lippens returned to his business career and re-entered Belgian politics.

His father, Hippolyte Lippens, had been Mayor of Ghent (1882–95) and a politician in the Liberal Party, serving as a member of the Chamber of Representatives and Senate (1882-1906).

[1] In 1907, Maurice joined the administrative board of the Compagnie du Congo pour le Commerce et l'Industrie (CCCI) replacing his deceased father.

[1] Based on his reputation as governor of East Flanders, Lippens was recruited in 1921 by Louis Franck, the Minister of the Colonies and a Liberal politician, to serve as Governor-General in the Belgian Congo.

[1] He reacted angrily to a plan by the Ministry to launch the construction of a railway between Buta and Bambili and, in January 1923, offered his resignation.

[2] Between 1935 and 1939, Lippens was involved in the charitable organisations that founded the Royal Library of Belgium in Brussels and the Academia Belgica in Rome, Italy.