Legal Aid Fee Dispute Triggers Strike by Northern Ireland Solicitors and Barristers

Criminal solicitors and criminal barristers in Northern Ireland are participating in a one-day strike as a result of a disagreement concerning legal aid fees. The Criminal Bar Association reported that legal aid rates for lawyers, when adjusted for inflation, have fallen by between 47% and 58% since 2005. The organization further stated that strike action is a “last resort” because the criminal aid system has reached a “crisis point,” and it urged the Justice Minister to promptly rectify the situation. The Department of Justice (DoJ) indicated it was “surprised and disappointed” by the action, given its ongoing efforts to secure additional funding. Legal aid for criminal court proceedings enables representation in a criminal case. These cases typically occur in the Magistrates’ Courts or Crown Court. Monday’s industrial action will involve barristers declining instructions for Category A Crown Court cases, such as murder and manslaughter. They will also decline instructions for any retrials stemming from hung juries or appeals. Warnings have been issued that further strike action may occur unless there is an immediate increase in criminal legal aid fees. Geraldine Hanna, commissioner designate for victims of crime, commented that victims will “bear the cost” of the industrial action. Ms Hanna mentioned that some victims and witnesses received calls late last week informing them that their cases would face further delays. “That level of additional stress and harm was avoidable, and we need to avoid anything like that happening again in the future,” she told BBC’s Good Morning Ulster programme. Ms Hanna also acknowledged that the work of criminal barristers and solicitors is “extremely demanding” and recognized that they should be paid “fairly and in a timely way.” She noted that further action is planned but encouraged those involved to “get around the table” to discuss the issues. “Until this dispute is resolved, all parties need to have the needs of victims and witnesses front and centre of their decision making and planning,” Ms Hanna added. The Law Society in Northern Ireland, the professional body representing solicitors, cautioned that the criminal justice system would collapse if urgent measures are not taken. It added that solicitors can no longer afford to handle criminal legal aid cases at the current fee levels. “The Law Society… is aware of the growing frustration on the part of criminal defence solicitors due to the failure to increase legal aid fees and delays in payments for work already completed,” a statement said. The body called upon Justice Minister Naomi Long to take action. Donal Lunny KC, Chair of the Bar Council of Northern Ireland, informed BBC News NI that his colleagues “fully empathise” with any distress caused to victims. He further stated: “We would say that the victims, more than anybody else, should be concerned about the state of our criminal legal aid system.” “At the minute, it is so poorly funded that there is a real risk that we’ll get to a point where either innocent people are being convicted, or guilty people are being acquitted. And both of those things should concern victims.” A statement from the DoJ said: “It is well-known the Department of Justice has been consistently underfunded and the fallout from such underfunding is now being realised.” “The Bar is aware that the Department has been working to secure a more sustainable budget and additional funding has been secured this year to meet the current pressures.” The department also noted that pressures reached an “all-time high” in 2023/2024, during which the Legal Services Agency, an executive agency of the DoJ, disbursed approximately £114m to legal professionals. It stated that this represented the “highest level of payment in the history of legal aid.” “The department will continue to push hard for more funding to address the underfunding issues across justice,” it added. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC holds no responsibility for the content of external sites. Information regarding its approach to external linking is available.