Prior to joining NIJC, Allena was a trial attorney at the Immigrant and Employee Rights Section of the Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, where she investigated and litigated claims of employment discrimination on the basis of citizenship or immigration status. Previously, Allena clerked for Judge Laurie J. Michelson of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. Allena is a graduate of American University and Harvard Law School and is licensed in Massachusetts. Before law school she worked with asylum seekers at Human Rights First in Washington, DC.