There is little doubt that Ashurst has been one of the worst-affected City players since the 2008-09 recession. The firm has been further weighed down in recent years by a protracted round of partner exits and a continued struggle to build upon the sizeable US structured finance practice it acquired in 2009.

As such, much has been riding on Ashurst's ability to rapidly reposition itself as a credible global challenger, in particular in the context of its ambitions to build up its Asia network. To that end, the firm had two achievements during 2011-12.

First, it increased its income by 6.3% to £322m, while profits per equity partner (PEP) edged up to £744,000 – a result that will be seen as very respectable against its peer group.

The second achievement is more dramatic, with Ashurst last September securing a high-stakes tie-up with leading Australian law firm Blake Dawson, marking a transformation of the firm's global business.

The Australia deal, which was greeted with surprise given Ashurst's track record in being associated with aborted merger talks with large US firms, saw the two firms unite in March this year under the Ashurst brand and combine operations in Asia. There will be a separate vote on full financial integration in 2014.

While the tie-up has had a mixed reception, it will hugely expand Ashurst's geographic reach and investing power by creating a firm with combined revenues of nearly £600m.

Much will be riding on Ashurst's success in galvanising the union, a task that has in part been taken up by Ashurst's new managing partner James Collis, who in March took over from long-term head Simon Bromwich.

Senior partner Charlie Geffen commented: "The last year has been a critical one for the firm. Following our combination with Blake Dawson, Ashurst now has some 400 partners and 1,700 lawyers worldwide. We have also steadily grown our revenue and PEP – which last year were up by 6% and 3% respectively – and plan to continue this trend going forward."