BY STACI WILSON
Montrose attorney Larry Kelly stands in front of law books in his Public Avenue office. November 15th marks his 50th year as a practicing attorney.
The Kelly Law Office in Montrose is reaching some major milestones this year.
On Nov. 15, attorney Larry Kelly will mark 50 years since he was admitted into the State Bar Association.
And the office marked the 100th year of being in the same Public Avenue building in April.
Kelly is a third generation lawyer in Montrose. His grandfather, John M. Kelly started the practice in 1884; his father, J. Melvin Kelly, and mother, Audrey Kelly, were also attorneys.
John M. Kelly moved the practice to its current location in 1915. The building used to be a hotel, Kelly said, and some of the upstairs rooms still have room numbers on the doors.
Law degrees adorn the office entry walls, along with an over three-foot muskie mounted on the wall. Kelly said his father caught the fish in Canada around 1940.
Political, local and family memorabilia are on display in cases in the Kelly Law Office. STAFF PHOTOS/STACI WILSON
“I’ve been around this office my entire lifetime,” Kelly said.
Growing up in the family business, Kelly said, “We had two people who were lawyers, and the rest of us who thought so. Dinner at our house was an interesting event.”
In addition to being a law office, the building serves as almost a museum – with a collection displayed of political, local and family artifacts.
Much of what is on display came from Audrey Kelly. “My mom had been going to auction sales since I was a kid,” Kelly said. And during the Bicentennial celebration in 1976, people were urged to display memorabilia.
But there are also some items that date back to his grandfather, including a letter from President Teddy Roosevelt urging support of Pennsylvania Governor Gifford Pinchot.
One of Kelly’s favorite items in the office is his cherry desk which came from the Ballantine estate at Louden Hill in Dimock Twp.
One week after being admitted to the Bar, Kelly was in the Army as a Private. He was stationed in Germany and worked one day as a teletype operator before joining the Army’s Judge Advocate General department, where he served until his enlistment ended in 1967.
He came back to Montrose briefly before taking on a position as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in 1970, and served in that position until 1978.
Upon his return to Montrose, he and his brother, Paul – also an attorney – were running the practice.
Kelly also served as the Susquehanna County District Attorney from 1980-88.
He’s built his practice around criminal and civil litigation – handling personal injury and product liability cases throughout his career.
Over the years, Kelly said he has seen a change in the public’s perception of the legal business.
There’s been a demonization of civil litigation lawyers, he said, “that just erodes the rights of victims to seek fair compensation.”
Kelly enjoys legal research and was the first recipient of the George Douglas Jr. Award presented by the Pennsylvania Association for Justice in recognition of Amicus Curae briefs.
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