Natalie Alfaro Gonzales

Partner

[email protected]

Houston

P: +1.713.229.1318
F: +1.713.229.7718
Natalie Gonzales Alfaro Baker Botts Houston

"Natalie is a natural leader and a fierce advocate. She always anticipated our needs, worked efficiently, and presented us with a clear and succinct work product that my executive leadership team could understand."

Chambers USA 2023

Natalie Alfaro Gonzales practices in all areas of intellectual property law, including patent and trade secret litigation, patent prosecution, and IP and technology transactions. Natalie represents both patent owners and defendants in patent and trade secret litigation matters involving a variety of technologies and industries, including energy, life sciences, automotive, telecommunications, retail, financial services, e-commerce, and software. Her litigation experience also includes copyright infringement and Lanham Act actions, as well as contested matters in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, including inter partes reviews. Natalie practices before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, preparing and prosecuting patent applications, and managing patent portfolios involving a wide array of technologies.

Natalie advises clients on the IP-related aspects of corporate and technology transactions, including mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures, joint development arrangements, licensing, contracting and employment arrangements. Natalie assists clients in crafting and negotiating agreements relating to IP ownership, IP transfers, confidentiality, software development and other commercial arrangements, including MSAs and SaaS agreements.

As a registered patent attorney with a full-service IP practice, Natalie works closely with her clients to provide a holistic approach to IP management, including protecting, enforcing, and defending IP rights.

Natalie co-leads the firm’s Houston partnerships with startup networks The Ion and the Rice Clean Energy Accelerator, and has experience helping emerging companies with their IP and transactional legal needs. Natalie is a member of the firm's Diversity & Inclusion Committee.

Natalie is also deeply involved in her community, including serving as President of the Hispanic Bar Association of Houston, on the Steering Committee for the Texas Minority Counsel Program, as a Trustee for the Foundation of Advancement of Diversity in IP Law, and as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Houston Law Center.

Following graduation from law school, Natalie served as a law clerk to the Honorable Leonard E. Davis of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.

Related Experience

Litigation

  • Art+Com Innovationpool GmbH v. Google Inc. (District of Delaware) - Represented Art+Com in a patent case generally involving the methodology for displaying a pictorial representation of space related objects
  • Bear Creek v. Mediacom (District of Delaware) - Defended Mediacom in a patent case concerning VoIP technologies
  • Berman v. DIRECTV, LLC and AT&T Services, Inc. (Northern District of Texas) - Defended AT&T and DIRECTV in a patent case involving overlay technologies
  • C-Cation Technologies v. Comcast Corporation, et al. (Eastern District of Texas) - Defended Cable One and Suddenlink in a patent case related to high-speed data systems
  • Convolve v. Dell, Inc. et al. (Eastern District of Texas) - Defended Dell in a patent case related to vibration reduction in computer hard drives
  • Createads v. Mediacom (District of Delaware) - Defended Mediacom in a patent case relating to website services technologies
  • EIG, Inc. v. Tudor Pickering (Southern District of Texas) - Defended Tudor Pickering in a copyright infringement case involving industry-wide energy publications
  • Elbit Systems Land and C41 Ltd. V. Hughes Network Systems, LLC (Eastern District of Texas) - Defending Hughes in a patent case involving satellite communications technologies
  • EMG Technology, LLC v. Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, Inc. et al. (Eastern District of Texas) - Defended TD Ameritrade in a patent case related to mobile device technologies
  • GlobeTecTrust v. Atlantic Broadband (District of Delaware) - Defended Atlantic Broadband in a patent case concerning optical and cable communication systems
  • GlobeTecTrust v. Cable One (District of Delaware) - Defended Cable One in a patent case concerning optical and cable communication systems
  • GlobeTecTrust v. Knology (District of Delaware) - Defended Knology in a patent case concerning optical and cable communication systems
  • GlobeTecTrust v. Mediacom (District of Delaware) - Defended Mediacom in a patent case concerning optical and cable communication systems
  • GlobeTecTrust v. RCN (District of Delaware) - Defended RCN in a patent case concerning optical and cable communication systems
  • GlobeTecTrust v. Suddenlink (District of Delaware) - Defended Suddenlink in a patent case concerning optical and cable communication systems
  • Keranos, LLC v. Analog Devices, Inc. (Eastern District of Texas) - Defended Toshiba in a patent case related to flash memory technology
  • Lamplight Licensing, LLC v. Eaton Corporation (Western District of Texas - Defended Eaton in a patent case related to power supply systems
  • MicroPairing Technologies LLC v. Toyota Motor Manufacturing Texas (Western District of Texas) - Defended Toyota Motor Manufacturing Texas in a patent infringement case related to in-vehicle electronics systems
  • Net Navigation Systems, LLC v. Huawei (Eastern District of Texas) - Defended Huawei in a patent case related to network routing systems
  • Pragmatus Telecom LLC v. Neiman Marcus Group, Inc. et al. (Eastern District of Texas) - Defended Wisteria in a patent case related to automated call distribution centers
  • RecruitMe, LLC v. InfoStream Group Inc. (Eastern District of Texas) - Defended InfoStream in a patent case related to online database technology
  • SimpleAir, Inc. v. Microsoft Corporation, et al. (Eastern District of Texas) - Defended Huawei in a patent case related to data transmission systems
  • Solocron Education, LLC v. SumTotal Systems LLC and Skillsoft Corporation (Eastern District of Texas) - Defended Skillsoft and Sumtotal in a patent case involving learning management systems
  • Sprint v. Cable One, Inc. (District of Kansas) - Defended Cable One in a patent case related to ATM switching and communication technologies
  • Sprint v. Mediacom, RCN, Atlantic Broadband, and WideOpenWest (District of Delaware) - Defending cable companies in patent infringement cases related to ATM switching and communication technologies
  • Textile Computer Systems, Inc. v. Frost Bank (Western District of Texas) - Representing Frost in patent infringement case related to payment technologies
  • TQP Development, LLC v. Cable One, Inc. (Eastern District of Texas) - Defended Cable One in a patent case related to encryption technologies
  • TQP Development, LLC v. TD Ameritrade (Eastern District of Texas) - Defended TD Ameritrade in a patent case related to encryption technologies
  • Transformer Protector Corporation v. William Kendrick and Sentry DS, Inc. (Southern District of Texas, Harris County Court) - Representing Transformer Protector in a false advertising and breach of contract action brought against defendants William Kendrick and Sentry DS, Inc.
  • Utex Industries, Inc. v. Troy E. Wiegand and Garner Denver. (Southern District of Texas) - Represented Utex in a patent infringement, trade secret misappropriation, breach of contract and tortious interference case related to specialized seals for fracturing pumps used in the oil and gas field

United States Patent & Trademark Office Proceeding Experience

  • Defended inter partes review proceeding challenging validity of patents related to seals for frack pumps
  • Challenged claims in inter partes review of patents concerning licensing and encryption technologies

Prosecution, Counseling, and Transactional

  • Represented and counseled numerous companies in the energy, power, software, and medical industries in connection with their intellectual property assets and various corporate transactions (IPOs, joint ventures, acquisitions, etc.)
  • Preparation and prosecution of patents for a number of clients, including major oil field services, software, and medical device companies

Awards & Community

Recognized as "Up & Coming" by Chambers USA, 2023

Recognized on the "Wonderful Women" list by Lawyers of Color, 2023

Recognized as a Texas Super Lawyers - Up-and-Coming 100 (Thomson Reuters), 2022-2023

Recognized as a Texas Super Lawyers - Up-and-Coming 50 Women (Thomson Reuters), 2021-2023

Recognized as a Texas Super Lawyer-Rising Star (Thomson Reuters), 2018-2023

Recognized as a "Top Latino Lawyer" by Latino Leaders Magazine, 2022

Recognized as a "Venture Capital 40 Rising Stars Under 40" by Venture Capital Journal, 2020

Recognized as a "Managing IP Rising Star," 2020

Recognized as a "Top Lawyer Under 40" by the Hispanic National Bar Association, 2020

News

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Thought Leadership

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Trade Secret Update

Speeches & Presentations

Houston Intellectual Property Law Association's Annual Institute

Events

Recent

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HIPLA Annual Institute on Intellectual Property

The Houston Intellectual Property Law Association’s 2021 Annual Fall Institute will be held October 7-9 at Moody Gardens Hotel in Galveston, Texas. HIPLA has put on the Fall Institute in association with the University of Houston for the past 37 years.

Kayo Women's Virtual Energy Summit

Baker Botts is a proud supporter of the 2020 Kayo Women's Virtual Energy Summit September 8-11.