"Although the firm has been around for 180 years, we only elected our first litigation partner in 1971," says Michael Bennett, the head of Linklaters' dispute resolution division.

Until 2014, dispute resolution did not exist as a standalone division at the firm. Now, with 55 partners, it accounts for just over 10% of the firm's total partnership. And while it remains the smaller sibling of Linklaters' other two core divisions – corporate and finance & projects –  Bennett says he has been given a "mandate to grow" the disputes offering.

Earlier this month, the firm announced the hire of white-collar crime partner Matt Axelrod from the US Department of Justice (DOJ) in Washington DC, and there are plans for further hires across London, continental Europe, Asia and the US. Bennett says that London, which currently has 22 disputes partners, has "a good case for growth, given its sustained excellent results".

The firm's Moscow office is near the front of the queue, with new additions set to be made imminently, while Bennett also says that there are plans to build on a number of one-partner practices in Europe, with Milan, Amsterdam, Stockholm and Lisbon all likely locations for disputes recruitment.

Bennett also points to further expansion in Asia, where the firm currently has three disputes partners in Hong Kong and two in Singapore. "There is room to grow and exploit opportunities in Asia," he says, adding that in the short term, the firm plans to appoint another litigation partner in mainland China.

The firm has identified three main areas as strategic priorities for growth: contentious competition, white-collar crime and arbitration. "Contentious competition hits our sweetspot in terms of high value matters for clients in cartel disputes or in front of the regulators," says Bennett. In 2015, the firm hired two partners from Baker McKenzie – global dispute resolution head Tom Cassels in London and white-collar crime head Doug Tween in New York, both of who handle contentious competition work. Since joining, Cassels has worked on mandates for mobile phone company Three and National Lottery operator Camelot, while Tween's cases have included advising clients on DOJ investigations and bribery and corruption matters.

The addition of Axelrod in DC complements the hire of another former DOJ lawyer – white-collar partner Adam Lurie, who joined Linklaters from Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft in February last year. Bennett says: "We have a lot of clients in the international network who find themselves exposed to the long arm jurisdiction of the DOJ in a way that they wouldn't normally expect, so having capability on the ground in the regulatory capital of the world is a good thing."

Bennett says the team in DC works closely with its counterparts across the Atlantic, such as London disputes head Satindar Dogra; particularly in cases where the DOJ and the UK's Financial Conduct Authority are both involved. Bennett says the firm's DC presence benefits its international clients. Axelrod's hire means the magic circle firm now has seven disputes partners based in the US.

The third key area of focus is arbitration, where Bennett feels the firm has historically been overlooked. "We have always had better arbitration credentials than the market recognised, and we are now ensuring that our expertise is properly promoted in the market," he says. To this end, in 2015 the firm hired Matthew Weiniger QC from Herbert Smith Freehills, historically a happy hunting ground for lateral disputes hires for the firm, making him co-head of arbitration alongside Pierre Duprey in Paris.

As part of its arbitration push, the firm has also brought its London arbitrators together into a formal group. Dogra explains that previously, arbitration partners were dispersed more widely around the practice, but "now we have a clear, coherent arbitration group", Dogra says, a move he describes as part of an effort to give the firm's arbitrators a stronger group identity and to help build the firm's brand in the arbitration sector.

While disputes will always be overshadowed to some extent by Linklaters' heavyweight reputation in corporate and finance, the investment the firm has made in the area is clear, and under Bennett's leadership this is only set to continue.

Key recent disputes hires for Linklaters

2015

• Litigation partner Borja Fernandez De Troconiz joined in Madrid from Allen & Overy
• International arbitration partner Matthew Weiniger QC joined from Herbert Smith Freehills
• Douglas Tween joined in New York from Baker McKenzie, where he was head of white-collar crime
• Tom Cassels joined in London from Baker McKenzie, where he was global chair of dispute resolution

2016

• White-collar crime partner Adam Lurie joined from Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft to head the firm's litigation and government investigations practice in Washington DC

2017

• Susana Cao Miranda joined from Goldman Sachs in London, where she was managing director and senior counsel
• Matt Axelrod joined from the DOJ in Washington DC, where he was principal associate deputy attorney general