Chapter Leadership Team
Michele Connors
Chapter Co-Chair
Michele Connors
Chapter Co-Chair
Senior Assistant General Counsel, Cirrus Logic
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Tracey Davies
Chapter Co-Chair
Tracey Davies
Chapter Co-Chair
Chief Strategy and Intellectual Property Officer, The Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT)
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Betty Yang
Chapter Co-Chair
Betty Yang
Chapter Co-Chair
Of Counsel, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher
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Natalie Alfaro Gonzales
Chapter Leader, Global Summit Committee
Natalie Alfaro Gonzales
Chapter Leader, Global Summit Committee
Partner, Baker Botts LLP
LinkedIn Profile. Opens in a new tab.Natalie Alfaro Gonzales practices in all areas of intellectual property law, including patent and trade secret litigation, patent prosecution, and IP and technology transactions. Ms. Gonzales works on patent litigation matters involving a variety of technologies, including mechanical and electrical devices and computer systems. Her litigation experience also includes copyright infringement and Lanham Act actions. Ms. Gonzales practices before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, preparing and prosecuting patent applications involving an equally wide array of technologies. Ms. Gonzales 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. Ms. Gonzales 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.
Natalie co-leads the firm’s Houston partnerships with accelerator networks Station Houston and The Ion, and has experience helping emerging companies with their IP and transactional legal needs.
Following graduation from law school, Ms. Gonzales served as a law clerk to the Honorable Leonard E. Davis of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. Ms. Gonzales now serves on the Advisory Board for the Women Lawyers of the Eastern District of Texas.
Ms. Gonzales co-teaches the Procedure of Patent Litigation course as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Houston Law Center. Ms. Gonzales also serves on the Steering Committee for the Texas Minority Counsel Program, the Board of Directors for the Hispanic Bar Association of Houston, and serves as a Deputy to the Regional President for the Hispanic National Bar Association.
Sheila Kadura
Chapter Leader
Sheila Kadura
Chapter Leader
Assistant General Counsel, The University of Texas System
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Hope Shimabuku
Chapter Leader
Hope Shimabuku
Chapter Leader
Director of the Texas Regional United States Patent and Trademark Office
LinkedIn Profile. Opens in a new tab.Join ChIPs Texas
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