Lindsay Lohan denies jewellery theft

Lindsay Lohan's lawyer on Saturday denied reports that the actress had stolen a necklace and said any charges against her would be fought in court.

Los Angeles police have been investigating allegations that the Mean Girls star walked off from a jewellery store last month without paying for a $2,500 necklace.

Prosecutors are reviewing whether to file formal charges against Lohan, although the necklace has been returned to a police station.

"We vehemently deny these allegations and, if charges are filed, we will fight them in court, not in the press," attorney Shawn Chapman Holley said in a statement.

A jewellery store in the beach resort of Venice, where Lohan now lives, reported the necklace missing on January 22 - just three weeks after she left her fifth stint in rehab in three years.

The allegations came as Lohan, 24, struggles to pull her life and career back together after more than three years of court appearances, failed drug tests, brief spells in jail and a drunk driving conviction.

Lohan is still on probation for her 2007 drunk driving offense and could face jail time if charged and convicted in the jewellery case.