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Barnes & Thornburg LLP, a leading national law firm, today announced the expansion of its national platform with the opening of a new office in Atlanta, the firm’s first office in the Southeast.
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, 3343 Peachtree Road N.E., Suite 1150.
The firm will aggressively recruit lateral attorneys in all practice areas, with the intention of building a full-service office in Atlanta, similar to its approach in Chicago where the firm has built a full-service office with more than 85 attorneys and other legal professionals.
Expanding Barnes & Thornburg’s National Platform into the Southeast
“Over the past few years, Barnes & Thornburg has continued to expand and enhance our national reputation in a number of practices with the addition of top legal talent,” Firm Managing Partner Alan A. Levin said. “Our Atlanta office opening is a logical next step in the firm’s evolution, combined with the convenience and local experience it brings for our existing clients located in the Southeast and Atlanta’s reputation as one of the leading U.S. business centers.”
“We are delighted to open this new office with two high-caliber practitioners who are well established in the community and look forward to recruiting other talented lawyers who complement the firm’s strategic vision and approach,” Levin said. “Stuart’s work as a skilled business lawyer is critical for a corporate law firm when building an office. Jason’s deep experience in intellectual property and technology law is impressive and matches the firm’s already strong national reputation in that area."
Attracted to Barnes & Thornburg for many of the same reasons, both Johnson and Bernstein look forward to leveraging the firm’s profile for clients in Atlanta and throughout the Southeast.
“The prospect of opening a new office for an entrepreneurial law firm like Barnes & Thornburg is an exciting opportunity,” Johnson said. “I counsel clients to treat the present economic climate as an opportunity to differentiate themselves from their competition, and joining Barnes & Thornburg is the opportunity to follow my own advice. “The firm also has a unique value-focused platform, given its business model and network, which allows us to provide clients with even more efficient and effective legal services, especially during these challenging economic times.”
Bernstein added: “Barnes & Thornburg’s substantial intellectual property practice and involvement in the health care, life sciences and software industries, to name just a few, paired with the firm’s commitment to providing quality legal services in many areas to clients of all sizes, was a strong influence in my decision to join the firm,” Bernstein said. “I am energized with the opportunity to help grow the firm’s presence and client base in Atlanta.”
About the Firm’s new Atlanta Partners
Stuart C. Johnson has practiced law in Atlanta for more than 20 years. His practice focuses on counseling growth-oriented middle market businesses on strategic transactional activity and general business matters. He has specific experience in transactions involving private equity and venture capital investors. He has served clients in the telecommunications, manufacturing, plastics, home building, business services, chemicals, logistics, food services, life sciences and health care industries.
Johnson is actively involved with the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG), which is the premier global association for professionals involved in corporate growth, corporate development, and mergers and acquisitions activity. He is a member of ACG’s Global Board of Directors, is the Chairman of the ACG’s national conference (InterGrowth®) in 2010, is a founder of the ACG Atlanta Capital Connection (which is the largest private equity conference in the southeastern United States), and has served as President, and as a member of the board of directors, of ACG’s Atlanta Chapter. Johnson also is a member of the Board of Directors, and finance committee chair, of Junior Achievement of Georgia, Inc., and is the Vice President of Finance, and a member of the Executive Committee, of the Atlanta Area Council, Boy Scouts of America.
Jason A. Bernstein has 25 years of experience in patent, trademark and copyright law, as well as technology and licensing transactions, and counsels start-up as well as established companies and universities in a wide variety of intellectual property issues.
He is involved in negotiating licensing agreements, strategic planning, and in infringement disputes. Bernstein also counsels clients in brand and innovation management and handles due diligence investigations related to merger and acquisition transactions.
Bernstein is a member of the board of directors, the Institutional Support Counsel and the Nominating Committee of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. He also is a board member of HealthMPowers, Inc. and serves on the advisory board of Dad’s Garage Theatre Company.
With more than 500 attorneys and other legal professionals, Barnes & Thornburg LLP is one of the largest law firms in the country. The firm serves clients worldwide from its offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Indiana, Michigan, and Washington, D.C.
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