Mr. Allen received his Bachelor of Arts degrees in English and Political Science from James Madison University in 1988.  He graduated from James Madison University magna cum laude with honors in English.  Mr. Allen received his Juris Doctor from the Marshall-Wythe School of Law at the College of William and Mary in 1991.  Mr. Allen served as Chief Justice of the Marshall-Wythe Moot Court Board and represented Marshall-Wythe in the round of regional finalists of the American Bar Association’s National Moot Court Competition.  Mr. Allen was also named to the Order of the Barristers at Marshall-Wythe.

Mr. Allen is licensed to practice law in all state and federal courts in New Mexico and Virginia.  He is also admitted to practice in Washington, D.C., the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the United States Court of Federal Claims.  Mr. Allen concentrates his practice in the areas of governmental liability, employment law, civil rights, constitutional law, class action, appeals in both state and federal court, personal injury, and insurance coverage/bad faith.  He has tried in excess of 50 bench and jury trials and handled over 40 appeals. Mr. Allen is a member of the State Bar of New Mexico, the Virginia State Bar, the New Mexico Defense Lawyers Association, the Defense Research Institute, and the American Civil Liberties Union.  He also serves on the Second Judicial District of New Mexico’s Standing Committee on Arbitration.  He has lectured on numerous topics relating to employment law, governmental liability and civil rights in continuing legal education and risk management seminars. 

Mr. Allen serves as the Board Chairman of the YMCA of Central New Mexico.  He was honored as the YMCA of Central New Mexico’s Volunteer of the Year in both 2004 and 2005.

Email: pallen@ylawfirm.com