Steven J. Allen

Steve Allen began his legal career as a law clerk to a United States District Judge for the Southern District of Alabama and the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.  After practicing briefly with a corporate and insurance defense firm in Mobile, he returned to Jackson, Mississippi, and joined the Jackson regional office of New Orleans’ Phelps Dunbar, LLP.  There, he engaged in a trial and transactional practice representing public and private employers, including employment discrimination and constitutional law defense, and drafting personnel policies.  He continued this work with the Brunini Law Firm in Jackson, and expanded his practice into defense of pharmaceutical manufacturers in the onslaught of multi-million dollar plaintiffs’ suits for which Mississippi became famous.  He also represented other clients in the defense of business and personal injury disputes.  At the beginning of June 2006, Steve moved his wife and two daughters to Hendersonville, and, after conducting a successful solo practice in Flat Rock, ultimately was recruited by Strauss &  Associates to handle general litigation that, previously, the firm was not equipped to handle, including estate controversy litigation, guardianships, will contests, court representation of trustees, business litigation, personal injury litigation, and essentially any matter that involves an administrative hearing or trial-related process.

Although once licensed to practice in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and North Carolina simultaneously, Steve now concentrates his practice in North Carolina, where he became licensed in 2006.  He also is licensed to practice before all North Carolina federal courts, including the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, as well as the United States Courts of Appeals for the Fifth and Eleventh Circuits, and the Supreme Court of the United States.  Steve is a North Carolina Certified Superior Court Mediator. After receiving his Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature from Millsaps College in Jackson, Mississippi, he received his Juris Doctor from the Paul M. Hebert Law Center at Louisiana State University.  He has published a number of papers in support of his presentations to NBI seminars on a wide range of topics, as well as a chapter on evidence in a prestigious Mississippi law encyclopedia.  He belongs to the Rotary Club in Hendersonville and serves on the Board of Directors of THRIVE in Hendersonville, a charitable organization dedicated to transitioning individuals with mental disabilities into self-sustaining citizens in their communities.