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Helena Alvarez

Associate | She/Her/Hers
Associate | She/Her/Hers
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VCard
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Areas of Focus

Overview

Helena Alvarez helps clients meet their legal and business objectives by counseling them on Antitrust & Competition and Mass Tort, Product & Consumer Litigation matters.

Helena supports clients on a wide variety of antitrust and competition issues. Her antitrust and competition representative experience includes civil litigation, investigations, and transactions.

Within her torts practice, Helena assists clients in the pharmaceutical, consumer product, and transportation industries with their regulatory and litigation needs.

Helena maintains an active pro bono practice, primarily handling asylum matters.

Helena received her J.D., cum laude, from American University Washington College of Law. In law school, she was a student attorney in the Glushko-Samuelson Intellectual Property Law Clinic and on the executive board of the American University Business Law Review. She earned her B.S.F.S. from Georgetown University.

Born and raised in El Salvador, Helena is a native Spanish speaker.

Career & Education

    • American University Washington College of Law, J.D., cum laude, 2023
    • Georgetown University, B.S., Foreign Service, 2016
    • American University Washington College of Law, J.D., cum laude, 2023
    • Georgetown University, B.S., Foreign Service, 2016

    • District of Columbia
    • District of Columbia

    • Member, ABA Antitrust Law Section, 2024 – Present
    • Member, ABA Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Section, 2024 – Present
    • Member, ABA Young Lawyers Division, 2024 – Present
    • Board Member and Fundraising Chair, Central American Resource Center (CARECEN), 2022 – Present
    • Member, ABA Antitrust Law Section, 2024 – Present
    • Member, ABA Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Section, 2024 – Present
    • Member, ABA Young Lawyers Division, 2024 – Present
    • Board Member and Fundraising Chair, Central American Resource Center (CARECEN), 2022 – Present

    • English
    • Spanish (native)
    • French
    • English
    • Spanish (native)
    • French

Helena's Insights

Client Alert | 5 min read | 07.20.26

DOJ and DHS Issue Interim Final Rule on State and Local Counter-Drone Authority Under the SAFER SKIES Act

On July 6, 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published an Interim Final Rule (IFR) setting up a new federal framework that allows state, local, Tribal, and territorial (SLTT) law enforcement and correctional agencies to detect, track, and, in some cases, disable or seize drones. The rule directly affects SLTT agencies looking to stand up counter-drone programs, as well as drone and counter-drone technology companies whose products will be subject to federal review and approval. Although the IFR bypassed the Administrative Procedure Act’s standard notice-and-comment process on good cause grounds — citing the statutory 180-day deadline and urgent public safety needs — the rule is already legally binding and effective as of July 1, 2026. The Departments are nonetheless accepting post-promulgation comments through September 4, 2026....

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Insights

Client Alert | 5 min read | 07.20.26

DOJ and DHS Issue Interim Final Rule on State and Local Counter-Drone Authority Under the SAFER SKIES Act

Client Alert | 5 min read | 05.18.26

The Hidden Ingredient Problem: PFAS Litigation and Regulation Are Reshaping the Beauty Industry

Client Alert | 4 min read | 05.14.26

No-Fly Zones for Drones: FAA Proposes New Rules Over Critical Infrastructure

Publication | 04.27.26

How Food, Beverage Claims May Preview Cosmetic Litigation

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Practices

Industries

Helena's Insights

Client Alert | 5 min read | 07.20.26

DOJ and DHS Issue Interim Final Rule on State and Local Counter-Drone Authority Under the SAFER SKIES Act

On July 6, 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published an Interim Final Rule (IFR) setting up a new federal framework that allows state, local, Tribal, and territorial (SLTT) law enforcement and correctional agencies to detect, track, and, in some cases, disable or seize drones. The rule directly affects SLTT agencies looking to stand up counter-drone programs, as well as drone and counter-drone technology companies whose products will be subject to federal review and approval. Although the IFR bypassed the Administrative Procedure Act’s standard notice-and-comment process on good cause grounds — citing the statutory 180-day deadline and urgent public safety needs — the rule is already legally binding and effective as of July 1, 2026. The Departments are nonetheless accepting post-promulgation comments through September 4, 2026....

View All Insights