It was a good idea at the time. Back in 2004 Richards Butler - then a top 30 City firm with roots in shipping, asset finance and litigation - decided it was going to set its stall out as one of the few law firms prepared to sue banks.

The move attracted considerable attention. So extensive were bank panels in the early years of the decade that virtually all the major firms in the City were conflicted out of litigation mandates. It was a huge opportunity.

Yet within just a couple of years that policy - something that made Richards Butler the talk of City litigators - was abruptly reversed. For in 2006 Richards Butler merged with Pittsburgh-headquartered Reed Smith, a firm whose biggest clients included Mellon (now Bank of New York Mellon) and Bank of America.

Download the .PDF to learn more!