City law firms are gearing up for a fees bonanza following last week’s US court ruling that blocked media tycoon Conrad Black’s proposed £260m sale of his controlling stake in Hollinger International to the Barclay brothers.

The decision by the Delaware court has left the way clear for a high-profile auction of the Telegraph newspaper titles to be run by investment bank Lazard (advised by Slaughter and May) and involving almost all of the City’s top 10 law firms and private equity houses.