Kristen Gruber Reif
Of Counsel
Kristen helps clients of all sizes build and defend high-value patent portfolios across a range of industries. Before transitioning to patent law, she spent nearly a decade in systems and process engineering, contributing to semiconductor manufacturing as well as aerospace and defense technologies. This technical foundation helps her translate technical concepts into clear, enforceable claim sets and collaborate effectively with engineers, scientists, and business leaders.
Kristen’s practice spans computer memory, Artificial Intelligence (including generative models), communication networks, telecommunications and wireless protocols, optics, semiconductors, food sciences, medical devices, biochemistry, oilfield technologies, energy storage, automotive, aerospace, and chemical manufacturing (including polymers and catalysts).
Representative Work
- Advised clients ranging from start-ups to multinational corporations in international patent filing and prosecution strategies
- Partnered with in-house counsel at a global semiconductor company to advise continuation filings and claim language and scope across multiple product lines
- Collaborated on-site with engineering and legal teams of a Fortune 500 company to perform patent mining and determine claim filing strategies based on technical analysis of competitor products
- Assessed patent strength and infringement risk by mapping claim elements to technical specifications developed by telecommunications standards organizations
Admissions
- Texas
- Hawaii
- USPTO
Education
- J.D. – University of Houston Law Center
- M.E. Software Systems Engineering – University of Colorado at Colorado Springs
- M.B.A. – University of Colorado at Colorado Springs
- B.S. Chemical and Petroleum Refining Engineering – Colorado School of Mines