Mr. Allcott has had a nearly 30-year career at the intersection of law and public opinion. As a young police and courts reporter in Palm Beach County Florida, he was on the team that covered the celebrated case of Firestone v. Firestone, one of the first civil cases to garner nationwide media attention. From 1976 to 1986 he practiced law in Richmond where he was involved in the media aspects of many high-profile civil cases, notably helping coordinate media responses for the product manufacturer's insurer in the Dalkon Shield litigation.

He was one of the first editorial staff members of Virginia Business, Virginia's only statewide business magazine, where he supervised the magazine's coverage of public policy issues and wrote a column on legal matters affecting Virginia's business community. The author of two books and numerous articles in national and regional publications, he also served as U.S. Senator Charles S. Robb's communications director.