West London Synagogue has sued its former accountant, Anne Allen, in the High Court in an attempt to recover damages of more than £500,000, a year after charges of theft against her were dropped.

Mrs Allen was due to stand trial at the Old Bailey in 2012 but the Crown Prosecution Service withdraw the charges only days before the case was due to heard.

Originally, she had faced allegations of theft of more than £600,000 — but, according to her lawyer, the amount had been reduced to £34,000 shortly before the trial date.

Her lawyer at the time said that Mrs Allen maintained her innocence and denied stealing any money from the synagogue.

Mrs Allen was dismissed in 2010 after what West London members were told was the discovery of “financial irregularities”.

In documents filed at the High Court, West London Synagogue alleged that Mrs Allen may have breached her contract and may have participated in a “conspiracy to cause harm” to the synagogue “by unlawful means”.

The synagogue stated that it expected to recover sums “in excess of £500,000”.

In a brief hearing last month, West London indicated that it was looking for a settlement.

Neither the synagogue’s leaders nor Mrs Allen wished to comment on the legal action.