Chicago-headquartered Jenner & Block is looking to become the latest US outfit to set up in London, with the firm conducting a search for top English law litigators in the City.

Legal Week has learned the firm is working with at least one London-based agent to recruit at partner level, with a view to launch in the City later this year.

Three sources separately confirmed the London search has been underway for several months, and that at least one magic circle litigation partner had been approached.

London would represent Jenner's first overseas base. The firm already has offices in Chicago, New York, Washington DC and Los Angeles.

Jenner is primarily known in the US as a litigation specialist, with around three-quarters of its 480 lawyers sitting in the disputes practice. It also carries out some transactional work.

Outside the US, the firm is perhaps best known for the role played by chairman Anton Valukas as the court-appointed examiner in the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy.

A spokesperson for the firm declined to comment on timing, bu said Jenner has "contemplated expansion overseas".

Jenner is one of the more profitable US outfits, with profits per equity partner standing at $1.49m (£900,000) in 2012, according to research by the American Lawyer.

The development follows Boies Schiller's push into the London market last year. For its first overseas office, the litigation powerhouse hired Bingham McCutchen's former London disputes head Natasha Harrison to manage the base and work alongside fellow partner Duane Loft.