Creative agency Leo Burnett has reiterated that the allegation of plagiarism in the production of its television commercial "Rubber Boy" for Petronas is "baseless" and said it now needs to protect its reputation.

"Leo Burnett needs to protect its trade and reputation and we have sought legal advice to determine the next steps," it said in a statement tonight.

Filmmaker Tan Chui Mui had in the past few days went public with claims that Leo Burnett plagiarised her team's work for the TV commercial 'Rubber Boy', which was submitted to the Cannes Lion festival.

Using the hashtag #LeoBurnettplagiarism on Facebook, Tan said it was based on a 2014 pitch her team did for Leo Burnett, which was rejected.

However, Leo Burnett insisted the commercial was internally conceived by the creative agency's team.

"As part of the creative journey from idea to shooting script, the client-approved script is shared with the prospective directors, and we guide them to evolve a treatment of our script.

"The purpose of this treatment is to add details and nuances to the script.

"Key elements such as the setting in the rubber estate and the character of the child and his motivations and circumstances, along with the key message, were always in the agency script that was briefed to all the directors involved," it said.

Leo Burnett added that many suggestions were exchanged during this process and the treatment evolved under the close guidance and supervision of the creative team.

"The final decision was accorded to the treatment which best met our objectives, and our client's.

"After this, we worked closely with the chosen director, from the actual shoot to the post-production process, to ensure the best possible outcome," it said.

As such, Leo Burnett stressed that Tan's claim, which it referred to as "the individual" without naming her, was baseless.