Interested in a future career as a lawyer? Use The Beginner’s Guide to a Career in Law to get started
Find out about the various legal apprenticeships on offer and browse vacancies with The Law Apprenticeships Guide
Information on qualifying through the Solicitors Qualifying Exam, including preparation courses, study resources, QWE and more
Discover everything you need to know about developing your knowledge of the business world and its impact on the law
The latest news and updates on the actions being taken to improve diversity and inclusion in the legal profession
Discover advice to help you prepare for and ace your vacation scheme, training contract and pupillage applications
Your first-year guide to a career in law – find out how to kickstart your legal career at this early stage
Your non-law guide to a career in law – everything you need to know about converting to law
updated on 06 October 2020
Some barristers are earning less than the minimum wage following decades of underfunding and the Treasury has been warned that the justice system is at a “tipping point”.
Barristers on government fees could earn the equivalent of £6.25 per hour “despite their central role in clearing the 500,000-plus backlog of cases in the criminal courts”, the Bar Council revealed in an open letter.
According to the report, the low legal aid rates are having a “disproportionate impact on diversity” within the legal profession, with women, minority ethnic and state-educated barristers more likely to work in publicly funded areas of law.
The open letter said: “Once highly regarded as a vital public service, today’s system is widely acknowledged to be suffering from a decade of underinvestment.”