Clay graduated from Texas A&M University in 1987 with a B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering. He worked for thirteen years in the chemical industry as a process engineer, production supervisor, or project manager, at companies such as Occidental Petroleum, Himont USA, Lyondell Petrochemical, and Nassau Engineering. A product focus included polyolefin. Technical focus included fluid flow, heat transfer, and pressure relief.

At Himont USA, Clay managed the day-to-day operation of two polypropylene production lines in Lake Charles, Louisiana, supported the start-up of a polypropylene production line for licensee Qilu Petrochemical in Shandong Province, China, and attended the International School for Advanced Studies in Polymer Science at the University of Ferrara in Ferrara, Italy.

Clay earned his J.D. from the University of Houston Law Center in 2003 with awards. While attending law school, he served as Associate Editor of the University of Houston Law Review. After graduating from law school, he passed the Texas Bar in 2003 and went to work for an intellectual property law firm.

Clay has practiced as an attorney since 2003 in primarily patent preparation and prosecution, including in areas of mechanical systems, power, process controls, medical devices, computer hardware and software, and chemicals including polyolefin and other polymers. Clients have included Chevron Phillips, LyondellBasell, Illinois Tool Works, General Electric, Rockwell International, Hewlett Packard, and Micron Corporation. Clay is registered to practice before the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Clay joined Blount PLLC in 2013.*