Last year was something of a watershed for Eversheds’ dispute resolution department. It pulled in a whopping £59m in revenue, with an impressive revenue per partner of £1.1m.

In October, department head John Heaps moved down to London from Leeds with the aim of boosting the firm’s litigation profile. The strategy dovetails with Eversheds’ overall aim of raising the profile of several contentious practice areas, with regulatory work in particular a success (the firm recorded a 39 per cent year-on-year turnover increase last year).

Heaps has a vision for his practice, believing it can and should compete with the City litigation powerhouses. By making key lateral hires, such as the recent appointment of Serious Fraud Office deputy director Peter Kiernan for the fast-growing fraud and financial crime practice, he might just succeed.