Data provided by HMRC to finance provider LDF shows that the average income of barristers (after costs) fell to £108,000 in the latest tax year, down from four per cent from the £113,000 in the previous year and down from £123,000 the year before. Deep cuts to legal aid have hit barristers hard, with fewer people now able to seek professional representation as it makes them financially unable to take their case to court.  LDF says that increased competition for work amongst barristers has also led to a sudden decrease in their workload over the last few years. New entrants to the profession shot up by 19 per cent in just two years, increasing from 11,000 in 2009/10 to 13,000 in 2011/12.

Fixed fees

In 2010, fixed fees for certain types of cases were introduced, leading to a decline in barristers taking on more complex legally aided work in areas like immigration and asylum. Subsequent bigger cuts, which came into effect on April 1, 2013, mean that some types of case are no longer eligible for public funds at all - including divorce, child contact, welfare benefits, employment, clinical negligence, and housing law except in very limited circumstances. Peter Alderson says: “As well as the cuts to legal aid meaning there is less work available for barristers, the Legal Aid Board is notoriously slow to pay them for their work, a big problem for barristers relying on quick payment to cover their bills.”

Career choice

LDF explains that becoming a barrister remains apopular career choices for young people – balancing potential high earnings with a challenging workload. Hence many aspiring young people have opted to enter the profession, increasing the competition for the same level of work. Peter Alderson says: “Late paying clients are also proving a real problem for barristers, which means a barrister’s cash flow can hit extreme peaks and troughs throughout the year – if a tax bill hits during a trough, many barristers could find their backs against a wall.”