One of the key findings from The Lawyer’s annual round-up of the top 50 global disputes practices is that international arbitration is one of the main battlegrounds for the world’s top litigation teams.

What is also clear is that London is at the centre of the action, a fact that has not gone unnoticed by the top international firms.

“London certainly has to be a place where you increase resources,” argues Gibson Dunn & Crutcher partner Larry Shore. “The way we look at the world, there’s certainly significant growth in international arbitration in London and New York, with arguably some levelling off in Paris.”

Shore’s perception is backed up by statistics from the ICC International Court of Arbitration, which shows London is gradually closing in on the French capital as the world’s favourite city for arbitration (see below).

Globally, however, there is much more than just arbitration keeping firms busy. This year’s top 50 litigation practices, based on the proportion of firms’ 2008 revenue derived from disputes, reflects increasing levels of activity across a wide range of areas.

The list is inevitably dominated by US firms. Strategically and historically litigation is not as important to UK firms, a fact underlined by the presence of only five UK-headquartered firms in the list.

That said, the current performance of some UK firms with strong countercyclical practices (think Stephenson Harwood, where revenue was up 8 per cent at the half year) might encourage firms on this side of the Atlantic to invest a little more in building disputes teams.

[continued] Focus: Fight Club: The top 50 litigation practices | Features | The Lawyer.