Allen & Overy has expanded its global legal services offering with the launch of a new support center base in Johannesburg.

The base will initially consist of 15 people and sit within the firm's current office in the city. It will launch early next year.

A&O opened an office in the South African city in 2014. It currently consists of 37 lawyers, including five partners, according to the firm's website.

The new base adds to the Magic Circle's current legal services support offering, which consists of one base in Belfast. The Irish base opened in 2012.

Angela Clist, head of the firm's legal service center offering said in a statement: "Johannesburg makes an ideal location for our new center as it has a strong base of legal experts."

Head of advanced delivery and solutions at the firm Andrew Trahair added in a statement: "The team will support both our traditional practice groups and our advanced delivery and solutions businesses, for example the markets innovation group and A&O consulting."

A&O joins several other firms which have picked Johannesburg as a base for legal service support centers, which is viewed as popular partly due to its similar timezone to the U.K.

Herbert Smith Freehills opened an offering in the city in 2017, while Hogan Lovells made the move three years earlier.

Belfast remains a popular city for firms to open support bases in, with more firms entering the market in recent years. Last summer Fieldfisher opened a new legal solutions hub in Belfast, setting its sights on headcount of 125 at the base within the next three years.