Michael Allen

Michael Allen is a partner in the civil rights law firm of Relman, Dane & Colfax, PLLC where his practice focuses on litigation under the Fair Housing Act and related civil rights laws. He joined the firm in June 2006, after 11 years of litigation and other advocacy on behalf of poor people and people with disabilities at the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law and a decade at Legal Services of Northern Virginia. Michael has litigated and lobbied at the federal and state levels, and appeared in national print and electronic media. He is a 1979 graduate of Georgetown University, and received his law degree in 1985 from the University of Virginia. He is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia and Virginia. Michael has written, lectured and consulted widely on civil rights and NIMBYism. Among other cases, Michael has been involved in: National Fair Housing Alliance v. HHHunt, --- F.Supp.2d ----, 2013 WL 335877 (W.D.Va. Jan. 29, 2013)(continuing violation theory applied to architecture firm for noncompliant design and construction). National Fair Housing Alliance v. S.C. Bodner Co., 844 F.Supp.2d 940 (S.D. Ind. 2012)(subsequent purchasers of covered multifamily dwellings may be liable for continuing to rent inaccessible units). State of Connecticut Office for Protection and Advocacy v. State of Connecticut, 706F.Supp.2d 266, (D.Conn. 2010)(Protection & Advocacy agency has standing to pursue claim under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act; class certified). McNamara v. Ohio Bldg. Authority, 697 F.Supp.2d 820 (N.D.Ohio, March 19, 2010) (Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act can impose non-discrimination obligations on private entities) Overlook Mutual Homes, Inc. v. Spencer, 666 F.Supp.2d 850 (S.D. Ohio 2009)(emotional support animal can qualify as reasonable accommodation under Fair Housing Act without specialized training) National Fair Housing Alliance v. A.G. Spanos Const., Inc.,, 542 F.Supp.2d 1054 (N.D.Cal. 2008)(standing and continuing violation theory in design and construction case brought under the Fair Housing Act)