Kevin P. Allen

Partner

  • Kevin P. Allen
  • Phone: +1 412 497 1037

    Import to Address Book

  • Duane Morris LLP
    625 Liberty Avenue, Suite 1000
    Pittsburgh, PA 15222-3112
    USA
  • Duane Morris LLP
    Boca Center Tower II
    5100 Town Center Circle, Suite 400
    Boca Raton, FL 33486-1008
    USA

Kevin P. Allen is managing partner of the firm's Pittsburgh office. Mr. Allen concentrates his trial practice on commercial litigation with an emphasis on contract disputes, business torts and the defense of class actions and consumer protection actions. A member of the Academy of Trial Lawyers of Allegheny County, Mr. Allen’s first-chair experience includes state and federal jury and nonjury trials, injunction proceedings and binding arbitrations. He also has argued appellate cases before the First Circuit, the Third Circuit, the Federal Circuit, and Pennsylvania’s Supreme, Superior and Commonwealth Courts. Mr. Allen has served as a court-appointed special discovery master to address privilege and work-product issues.

Mr. Allen is a 1995 graduate of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law and a graduate of Yale University.

Admissions

  • Pennsylvania
  • Florida
  • West Virginia
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
  • U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania
  • U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania
  • U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia
  • U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
  • Supreme Court of the United States

Education

  • University of Pittsburgh School of Law, J.D., 1995
  • Yale University, B.A., 1992

Experience

  • Duane Morris LLP
    - Partner, 2021-present
  • Eckert Seamans
    - Partner, 2012-2021
  • Thorp Reed & Armstrong
    - Partner/Associate, 1995-2012

Professional Activities

  • Inducted into the Academy of Trial Lawyers of Allegheny County, 2021

Honors and Awards

  • Listed in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business, 2023 and 2024
  • Thomson Reuters Stand-out Lawyer, 2023 and 2024

  • Listed in Pennsylvania Super Lawyers

Civic and Charitable Activities

  • Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation
    - Board of Trustees, Chair
  • Yale Club of Pittsburgh
    - Former Trustee

Selected Publications

  • Author, "The Testamentary Exception Does Not Permit a Decedent to Impliedly Waive a Survivor’s Attorney-Client Privilege," The Legal Intelligencer, December 3, 2024
  • Co-author, "Give Contract Amendments Their Own Integration-Plus Clauses," The Legal Intelligencer, April 16, 2024
  • Co-author, "Insulate Clients From Fraud Claims With Integration-Plus Contract Clauses," The Legal Intelligencer, February 29, 2024
  • Author, "Recent Special Master Decisions Highlight 2 Novel Ways to Lose Attorney-Client Privilege," The Legal Intelligencer, September 12, 2023
  • Author, "Inferential Advice-of-Counsel Defense Waives Privilege, Court Holds," The Legal Intelligencer, March 16, 2023
  • Author, "The Attorney-Client Privilege and Work-Product Doctrine in Pennsylvania 7th Edition," Pennsylvania Bar Institute, October 5, 2022
  • Author, "Court Refuses to Conduct an In Camera Review in Response to Challenge to Privilege Log," The Legal Intelligencer, September 1, 2022
  • Author, "Scalpel or Chainsaw? Third Circuit Continues to Pare Back TCPA’s Reach," The Legal Intelligencer, July 22, 2022
  • Author, "Pa. Ruling On Attorney - Client Privilege Appears Flawed," Law360, April 8, 2022

  • Author, The Attorney-Client Privilege and Work-Product Doctrine in Pennsylvania, Sixth Edition, PBI Press, 2016

  • Author, "Attorney-Client Privilege and Common Interest Doctrine May Provide Less Protection Than You Think," The Legal Intelligencer, February 1, 2022
  • Author, "King George III, Freedom of Speech and the Attorney-Client Privilege," The Legal Intelligencer, January 12, 2022

  • Co-author, “Is This the End of the TCPA? High Court Hears Oral Arguments in ‘Barr’,” The Legal Intelligencer, May 2020

  • “Court Rejects Use of ‘Attorneys’ Eyes Only’ Designations for Privileged Documents,” The Legal Intelligencer, April 2020

  • “11th Circuit declines to perform ‘surgery’ on obsolete Telephone Consumer Protection Act provisions,” Westlaw Journal, February 21, 2020

  • “Federal Opinion Navigates Difficult Privilege and Work-Product Issues,” The Legal Intelligencer, December 2019

  • “Pa. Superior Court Confuses the ‘At-Issue’ Exception to the Attorney-Client Privilege,” The Legal Intelligencer, October 2019

  • “Muddying the Waters of Pa.’s Attorney-Client Privilege, Work-Product Doctrine,” The Legal Intelligencer, September 2019

  • “Pennsylvania Court Muddies Privilege And Work-Product Waters,” Law360, July 10, 2019

  • “No Work-Product Protection for Notes Written by Investigator Hired by Counsel,” The Legal Intelligencer, December 3, 2018

  • Co-author, “INSIGHT: Third Circuit Continues to Rein in Runaway TCPA Claims,” Bloomberg Law, July 3, 2018

  • “TCPA Alert: Third Circuit Continues to Rein in Runaway TCPA Claims,” Eckert Seamans’ Legal Update, June 27, 2018

  • “In Camera Review of Privileged Documents: Is It Both Mandatory and Immediately Appealable?” The Legal Intelligencer, February 8, 2018

  • “Federal Court Endorses ‘Functional Equivalent’ Doctrine for Purpose of Pennsylvania’s Attorney-Client Privilege,” ACBA’s Lawyers Journal, May 12, 2017

  • “Carefully Guard the Confidentiality of Privileged Communications,” PBI Now, March 21, 2017

  • Co-author, “Intangible Concrete- Spokeo, Inc. v. Robins and Constitutional Standing,” Internet Telephony, September 6, 2016

  • “In-house Attorney-Client Privilege and ‘Lawyerly Things,’” Corporate Counsel, January 2015

  • “Rules of the Game: Tortious Interference With Contract,” The Legal Intelligencer, October 30, 2013

  • “Insurance Counsel and the Attorney-Client Privilege: Who is the Client?” The Legal Intelligencer, February 28, 2013; Eckert Seamans’ Legal Update, Spring 2013

  • “The Right to Remain Anonymous – Should Anonymous Speech Be Protected in the Age of the Internet,” Pennsylvania Lawyer, July/August 2011

  • “Delimiting Defamation: Pennsylvania Supreme Court Protects Reputation From Freedom of Speech Defense,” Philadelphia Lawyer, Summer 2008

  • “In re Teleglobe: The Attorney-Client Privilege and In-House Counsel,” Washington Legal Foundation, November 30, 2007

  • “Is the 9th Circuit Reining in the CDA?” Law.com, September 11, 2007

  • “Federal Law Protects Internet Companies from Blame for Content,” Law.com, July 3, 2007

  • “Multiple Hits, Single Publication,” Law.com, June 15, 2007

  • “White Collar Crime Policy on Legal Fee Payment Implicates Civil Liberties,” Washington Legal Foundation, June 8, 2007

  • “The Attorney-Client Privilege and the ‘Complete Lawyer’: More than Mere Legal Advice,” Law.com, March 6, 2007

  • “Attorney-Client Privilege: Everyday Rules from a High-Profile Case,” Law.com, October 3, 2006

  • “The Oddity and Odyssey of ‘Presumed Damages’ in Defamation Actions under Pennsylvania Law,” 42 Duq. Law Review 495, Spring 2004

  • “Contractual Fee Shifting Clauses – How to Determine ‘Prevailing Party’ Status,” Pennsylvania Bar Assoc. Quarterly, LXXIV, No. 4 at 178, October 2003

Media Hits

  • “3 Things Pa. Law Firm Leaders Are Concerned About In 2024,” Law360 Pulse, January 1, 2024

  • “Dominion Voting Systems sues Giuliani for $1.3B over election claims,” Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, January 2021

  • “Did Boies Schiller Represent Theranos’ Elizabeth Holmes or Not?” The Recorder, December 2020

  • “Decision in TCPA case will give defendants ammo to fight litigation, Pittsburgh lawyer says,” Pennsylvania Record, October 2020

  • “Paterno Ruling Highlights Broad Pa. Work Product Protections,” Law360, July 28, 2017

  • “First Amendment Violation? Facebook’s Arguments on Alleged TCPA Violations May Fall Flat, Say Experts,” Communications Daily, November 7, 2016

  • “Pennsylvania court rules against owner of landlocked plot seeking road across neighbor’s land,” FoxBusiness.com, August 29, 2014

  • “Court Eyes Discovery of Attorney-Expert Communication,” The Legal Intelligencer, May 28, 2013

Selected Speaking Engagements

  • Speaker, "Heads or Tails? Different Sides of the Same Coin: Attorney-Client Privilege and Work-Product Doctrine," Philadelphia Bar Association CLE, July 26, 2023
  • Presenter, "Pennsylvania Attorney-Client Privilege and Work-Product Doctrine," Continuing Legal Education Arm of the Pennsylvania Bar Association Webinar, November 2, 2022

  • “The Attorney-Client Privilege and the Work-Product Doctrine in Pennsylvania,” Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Civil Conversations CJE Program, September 2020

  • “Protecting and Waiving the Work Product Privilege – State vs. Federal Court,” 31st Annual Academy of Trial Lawyers of Allegheny County Federal Practice Program, December 2019

  • “The Attorney-Client Privilege and the Work-Product Doctrine in Pennsylvania,” Pennsylvania Bar Institute 21st Annual Employment Law Institute, April 2015

  • “Preparing a Witness to Testify,” Pennsylvania Bar Institute, March 30, 2015

  • “Pennsylvania Attorney-Client Privilege and Work-Product Doctrine,” Pennsylvania Bar Institute Continuing Legal Education, December 2014

  • “Tortious Interference with Contract: Walking or Crossing the Line Between Vigorous Competition and Unfair Business Conduct,” CLE seminar for in-house counsel presented by The Legal Intelligencer, June 2012; Philadelphia Bar Institute 16th Annual Business Lawyers Institute, November 2010; Seminars for in-house counsel and corporate executives in Philadelphia, May 2010, and in Pittsburgh, October 200