Melvin L. Felton II, president of the Langston Bar Association, says he had no choice but to succeed

Melvin L. Felton II of Sanders Roberts LLP took on the role of president of the John M. Langston Bar Association earlier this year, setting an ambitious goal for its members: to contribute 300 hours of pro bono service to underserved communities. At the organization's Hall of Fame Installation and Dinner on Saturday, Oct. 5, Felton will announce that they have exceeded that target.

In a conversation with the Daily Journal, Felton reflected on his journey from Gary, Indiana, through Phillips Exeter Academy and Columbia Law School, to become a litigator in Los Angeles. He also shared how his background in journalism, which he studied as an undergraduate, continues to shape his approach to the law. Here is an edited version of that conversation:

Daily Journal: What made you set the pro bono goal for your members?

Felton: Our theme for the year is "In Service." That's derived from our namesake, John Mercer Langston. He was among the first Black lawyers in our country. Law schools would not accept Black students at all. He applied and got rejected every time. [Langston studied the law as an apprentice and was admitted to the Ohio Bar in 1854.]

There was one champion he had in an admissions officer who wrote to him saying, "I think I can get you into law school if you say you're from the West Indies." Langston responded politely but sternly, saying something to the effect of: "I will die as I lived in the service of my fellow countrymen," refusing to deny who he was for personal benefit.

DJ: Can you tell us about one of the pro bono events that you've done this year?

Felton: Our most recent event, over the weekend, was a legal clinic for entertainment professionals and creatives who need legal work or to understand how the law affects them. We provided 10-12 entertainment attorneys to give seminars on frequent legal issues and offer pro bono consultations.

DJ: What other initiatives are you working on this year?

Felton: Our first event featured four Black women who were managing partners of major law firms discussing their paths to partnership and what it took to rise to managing partner roles. It was moderated by retired [2nd District Court of Appeal] Justice Candace Cooper. During Women's History Month, we honored each of Langston's past presidents who were women. We hosted it at the Commerce Casino, as one of our past presidents is now the chief administrative officer there.

DJ: How has being a member of a bar association impacted your own career?

Felton: Practicing law is probably the most collaborative profession that exists. Our legal system, at least in litigation, is built on stare decisis -- you build upon what's been done before you. The only way to know what's been done before or what others are doing is to communicate. As a young associate, I was going through the pains of being a new attorney trying to figure out litigation and win cases. Bar associations, specifically, gave me access to folks who've done it before. It allowed me to build a community I could call up and say, "I've got this issue I've never seen before, what do you think?" Through the bar association, I've gained colleagues, clients, and dear friends.

DJ: You studied journalism as an undergraduate. What led you to choose a different path instead of becoming a journalist?

Felton: I always wanted to do something else, but I wasn't sure what. I figured that if you knew how to write and tell a story -- really, how to communicate -- that's what life's about, no matter what you do. I still flex my journalist muscle through briefs and talking to juries. The greatest thing the Annenberg School of Journalism at USC taught me is that people care about themselves and the people they love. If we misspelled or mispronounced someone's name, that was an automatic zero. It's a lesson in humanity and knowing what really matters and impacts people.

Being able to piece together a puzzle with no picture and half the pieces missing is the job of a journalist. You have to get people comfortable enough to open up and tell their story. You need discernment to weigh credibility and judge if someone has a reason to lie or omit facts. Where there are gaps, you have to identify and fill them in. At the end of the day, you have to tell the story or communicate your client's truth based on the facts and inferences you can draw. I had an investigative journalism class in my senior year that confirmed for me that I wanted to be a lawyer, specifically in litigation.

DJ: Where did you grow up?

Felton: I was born and raised in Gary, Indiana, most famous as the birthplace of Michael Jackson and the Jackson Five. It's going through tough times like many places in America, but it had one of the first Black American mayors of a major city in the late '60s.

The education system there was tremendous. I went to Benjamin Banneker Achievement Center, a magnet-type elementary school. We were taught at a very early age that we could do whatever we set our targets on, not despite our ethnicity, but because of it. That's a message you can't even pay for today, but I got it for free.

For high school, I got a scholarship to attend a boarding school, Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire. There, I got to know people from all over the world and understand the variety that exists in opinion, sensibility, culture, and ways of getting things done. Those two experiences combined were so formative for me, so foundational for me. I have no choice but to do what I'm doing now based on the incredibly solid foundation I have.