Litigators have been banking on the credit crunch to deliver a long-awaited boost to their practices. But, finds Claire Ruckin, a year of market turmoil has yet to prove the case

Since the slump of 2002 and 2003 failed to deliver the predicted upswing of litigation and insolvency work, there has been a clear, if little-articulated, fear among the litigation teams of major City firms: are we living on borrowed time?