Allard was a law clerk for Chief Judge Robert Francis Peckham of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, and for Judge Patricia Wald of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. He then worked for Senators Edward Kennedy (1983–1986) and Daniel Patrick Moynihan (1986–1987).[5][4][6]
He was a partner at Latham & Watkins, where he chaired the firm's Government Relations Group through 2005.[4] Allard then served as chair of the Public Policy Department and co-chair of the Government Advocacy Practice Group at Patton Boggs.[4][7]
Allard served as the eighth dean of Brooklyn Law School from 2012 to 2018, and as president from 2014 to 2018.[8][4][9][10] Allard is Professor of Law at Brooklyn Law School, and teaches courses on Government Advocacy, Privacy Law in a Digital World, and Introduction to Legal Process.[4] He also serves as senior counsel in the public policy and regulation practice at Dentons law firm since 2015.[11][12] In December 2018 the law school announced its intention to establish the Nicholas W. Allard Chair in Global Legal Studies, in recognition of Allard's legacy of global engagement.[13]
He was named on the City & State 2017 “Brooklyn Influencers” list, received a top ranking in “Government Relations” by Chambers USA (from 2012 to 2015), was named one of D.C.’s “Top Lobbyists” by The Hill (from 2008 to 2013), was on the Super Lawyers list of The Washington Post (2012 to 2015), and received a Hermes Award for Contribution to Study of Communications from the Syracuse University College of Law.[4][12] Allard has published scholarly articles on internet law, new media, and privacy.[4][12]
In July 2022, the Jacksonville University College of Law announced that Allard would serve as its inaugural Dean.