Back in November, Bryan Cave acquired Powell Goldstein. At the time of the merger, it looked like Bryan Cave was throwing PoGo a lifeline, potentially saving the venerable southern firm from dissolution.

But months after the merger partners are still leaving legacy Powell Goldstein. The Indiana firm Barnes & Thornburg is opening up an Atlanta office with two former PoGo partners. Indy.com reports:

Stuart C. Johnson and Jason A. Bernstein, previously partners in the Atlanta office of Bryan Cave Powell Goldstein, will join the firm to open the Atlanta office. Johnson becomes a partner in the firm’s Business Department, and Bernstein becomes a partner in the Intellectual Property Department. Both will join the firm’s new office located in Buckhead at the Atlanta Financial Center.

After the jump, a tipster reports on the significance of these defections.