Allen & Overy (A&O) could rack up further costs from this year's global restructuring, after it emerged that the firm is involved in at least one lawsuit in Germany.

The magic circle firm confirmed that at least one former associate in Germany still has a case pending against it, with the unfair dismissal dispute relating to redundancies made in the Frankfurt office as part of A&O's worldwide restructuring.

A&O announced in February that it was to reduce partner, associate and support staff numbers by 9% worldwide, with the cuts costing the firm £46m in the 2008-09 financial year.

The current lawsuit was filed several months ago and it is understood that it could be concluded in the German labour courts before the end of the year.

The firm's confirmation followed reports on legal blog RollOnFriday earlier today (14 August) that it is facing lawsuits from two former German associates.

However A&O denied reports that it also faces unfair dismissal charges from German support staff.

An A&O spokesperson said: "Our statement is that there are open cases concerning associates but we are not aware of any open cases regarding support staff. We cannot make any further comments on an ongoing case."

Of the firm's £46m restructuring costs, A&O paid out £26.4m to departing partners, with the remaining £19.6m going on severance packages for lawyers and support staff.

News of A&O's case in Germany came after magic circle rival Linklaters last week confirmed that it is in discussions with at least one former associate in its London office stemming from its sizeable redundancy consultation.

Allen & Overy on the Legal Week Wiki