Sell & Melton

The law firm of Sell & Melton was formed in 1980 by the merger of two prominent Macon firms: Sell, Comer & Popper and McKenna, House, Lancaster & Green (which had been Melton, McKenna & House, until Buckner F. Melton, Sr. was elected in 1976 to be the Mayor of the City of Macon). The lineage of Sell, Comer & Popper dates backs to the early 1950's.... Ed Sell, Jr. practiced law with McKibben Lane until Mr. Lane's death in 1956. At that point, Mr. Sell invited John D. Comer to meet him for a cup of coffee, and they agreed to form a law partnership. Joseph W. Popper, Jr. later joined them to form Sell, Comer & Popper. The firm focused primarily on business representation, estates and trusts, and litigation, with a strong emphasis on government representation. Melton, McKenna & House was formed in 1960. It initially consisted of Buckner F. Melton, Sr., Judge Andrew W. McKenna (later to become General McKenna) and Mitchel P. House, Jr., with Carl E. Lancaster, and Doye E. Green, Sr. joining the firm shortly after its creation. The firm focused primarily on the representation of individuals in litigation, but it also had a significant practice in representing governmental entities. When Buckner F. Melton's term as the Mayor of the City of Macon was concluding and he was preparing to return to the practice of law, he approached his close friend, John D. Comer, to explore the possibility of joining these two thriving Macon firms to form a single firm. The merger of the two firms was a unique undertaking, especially in a town the size of Macon. The merger created a large firm by middle Georgia standards, and the local newspaper christened Sell & Melton as the new "mega firm. The firm continued its focus on governmental representation, and it also maintained a balance between the representation of businesses and banks and the representation of injured individuals in civil litigation and workers' compensation cases. Sell & Melton originated from a friendship and from a shared emphasis on government representation. Today, ...Read More