Rudolph “Rudy” Fink IV
Rudolph “Rudy” Fink IV litigates intellectual property and complex commercial matters. Rudy brings a broad background—from working for the courts, working in engineering (and as a business owner), and a career of complex cases for plaintiffs and defendants—to helping his clients. Rudy prides himself on understanding his clients’ cases and their concerns, strategizing with them about how to reach their goals, and advocating on their behalf.
Prior to joining the Davis Firm, Rudy practiced law at a national litigation boutique in trade secret, patent, bankruptcy, ERISA, breach of contract, and class action matters.
Earlier in his career, Rudy clerked for three different federal judges: the Hon. William C. Bryson of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the Hon. J. Rodney Gilstrap and the Hon. Roy S. Payne of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Marshall Division. During his clerkships, Rudy was responsible for more than 1,000 complex civil cases and actively participated in hundreds of hours of judicial proceedings, including 13 trials, which covered areas from personal injury to patents.
Prior to clerking, Rudy was an associate at a large international firm. Throughout law school, Rudy also worked full-time for large international firms as a technical advisor/specialist, supporting cases in federal courts across the country from pitch through post-trial by developing and resolving factual issues underlying the matters.
Before moving into the law, Rudy worked in neuroscience research, developing novel laser microscope systems, and as a freelance consultant /engineer to high-end corporate and academic research organizations.
Practice Areas
Education
- J.D., The University of Houston Law Center, 2012
- B.S., Computer Science, Rice University, 2002 (focus on networks and security)
Clerkships
- William C. Bryson, U.S. Court of Appeals, Federal Circuit
- J. Rodney Gilstrap, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas
- Roy S. Payne, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas
Bar Admissions
- State of Texas
- The U.S. Supreme Court
- The U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 1st Circuit
- The U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 2d Circuit
- The U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 3d Circuit
- The U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 4th Circuit
- The U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 5th Circuit
- The U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 6th Circuit
- The U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 7th Circuit
- The U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 8th Circuit
- The U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 9th Circuit
- The U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 10th Circuit
- The U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 11th Circuit
- The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
- The U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims
- The U.S. District Courts for the Northern, Southern, Eastern, and Western Districts of Texas
- The U.S. District Courts for the Eastern and Western Districts of Arkansas
Professional Honors
- 2021, 2022, 2023 Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch recognition for “Commercial Litigation” and “Litigation – Intellectual Property”
- Giles S. Rich American Inn of Court Award, given annually to one junior member, May 2016 at the Supreme Court
- Exceptional Merit Award, American Society of Anesthesiologists for a “Fiber Optic Bronchoscope Computer Simulator” project
Speaking Engagements
- Presenter, Mid-Year Update (Trade Secrets), American Intellectual Property Law Association’s 2020 Spring Meeting, 05.14.2020
- Panel speaker, “Comparing Notes on Trade Secret Litigation in Federal Courts and the ITC,” Center for American and International Law’s 57th Annual Conference on Intellectual Property, 11.11.2019
- Presenter, “Trademarks in the Alcohol Industry,” Barbara M.G. Lynn American Inn of Court, 09.19.2018
- Panel speaker, “Local Rules, Local Patent Rules, Divisions judges of EDTX. From Case Management Conferences and Discovery to Voir Dire and Jurors Who Sometimes Ask Questions, It’s Not as Homogeneous as You Might Think. But Fairness and Credibility Counts Everywhere,” Eastern District of Texas 2018 Bench Bar Conference, 10.19.2018
- Panel speaker, “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of Early Damage Disclosures. A Look at the New California Approach,” Eastern District of Texas 2017 Bench Bar Conference, 10.05.2017
- Presenter, “How Likely is a District Court Stay for a PTAB Proceeding?”, Giles S. Rich American Inn of Court, 2016
Publications
- “Legal Distancing: Reducing your odds of catching/spreading Trade-Secret Litigation in These Tumultuous Times,” by Robert Manley, Rudy Fink and Jonathan Powers, 05.12.2020
- 2012 Patent Law Decisions of the Federal Circuit, 62 Am. U. L. Rev. 827 (2013)
- “Three-dimensional Random Access Multiphoton Microscopy for Fast Functional Imaging of Neuronal Activity,” Nature Neuroscience, June 2008, at 713-720
- “Acousto-optic multiphoton laser scanning microscopy (AO-MPLSM) for structural and functional imaging in living brain slices,” Proc. SPIE 5700, Multiphoton Microscopy in the Biomedical Sciences V (30 March 2005)