Spencer Fane LLP is pleased to announce that Danielle “DJ” Healey has joined the Intellectual Property Practice Group as a partner in the firm’s Houston office. “I am coming to Spencer Fane to work with my friend Erick Robinson, who has built a first-rate group focused on litigation-funded patent enforcement,” she said. “I will work toward the continued growth of that practice and provide best-in-class representation to our clients using a more flexible model than traditional large law firms.”
DJ is ranked as one of the best IP litigators in the United States by Chambers Global and placed in the top tier of IP litigators in Chambers Texas. She has been listed in Best Lawyers in America since 2007, and in 2021 was ranked as their Best Lawyer of the Year for IP litigation in the Houston Area. She was one of the original charter members of the Judge Nancy J. Atlas Intellectual Property Inn of Court, worked with the Houston Federal Judges in drafting the Court’s Local Patent Rules, and was a director of the Eastern District of Texas Bar Association. DJ has represented both plaintiffs and defendants in patent, trade secret, and computer software copyright cases. She developed one of the biggest plaintiff’s cases in a trade secret case, culminating in a then-record-setting nine-figure verdict.
With more than three decades of experience, DJ brings a proven track record in representing individual inventors, start-ups, middle market, and Fortune 500 companies in complex IP and IP-related antitrust and unfair competition cases. She also has extensive experience managing Standard-Essential Patent (SEP) issues. She has tried cases in U.S. District Courts, state courts, the U.S. International Trade Commission, the International Chamber of Commerce (arbitration), the American Arbitration Association, and private arbitration. DJ has run cases in federal and state appellate courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court and the Texas Supreme Court. She has achieved great results with a variety of cases in the fields of telecommunications, microprocessors, non-volatile computer storage, medical devices, chemical catalysts, oil field chemicals and equipment, undersea exploration and production equipment, and computer software.
DJ has developed multi-jurisdictional legal strategies for plaintiffs and defendants involving courts in the U.S., Europe, and Asia, and also regarding administrative panels. Her strategic expertise has led to success in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), invalidity and declaratory judgment actions in Europe, and IP antitrust matters before the European Commission. She has led patent and antitrust matters before the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and has represented clients in IP-related competition matters before the FTC, the European Union, and Texas state authorities.
“I have been fortunate to develop not only a professional relationship with DJ but also a personal friendship I truly value,” said Erick Robinson, Intellectual Property Practice Group Co-Chair for Spencer Fane. “I am tremendously excited to have such an established and respected voice at our firm and in our Houston office and look forward to achieving great things for our clients together. No one knows more about patent litigation and IP strategy than DJ.”
In addition to her legal practice, DJ maintains an active presence as a thought leader, speaker, and author on trade secrets, patent extraterritorial liability, patent damages, IP-related antitrust law, arbitration, and mediation. She has spoken at Stanford Law School, the University of Texas School of Law, ABA, the USPTO, as well as seminars for corporate clients.
DJ completed her undergraduate studies at Brown University and later earned her Juris Doctor with honors from the University of Texas Law School. She also completed a clerkship for the Hon. James DeAnda in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas.
