Court cases and trials will return to normal from Tuesday after barristers in England and Wales voted to accept a new pay offer.
The barristers accepted a 15% pay rise after weeks of strike action, affecting hundreds of legal proceedings across the two nations.
The result of the ballot on the offer made by Government is: ⁰ ⁰"Do you accept the offer from the MOJ as set out in the accompanying proposal document and therefore vote to suspend the action?"
— The CBA (@TheCriminalBar) October 10, 2022
•Yes - 1488 (56.74%)
•No - 1117 (43.26%)
•Total Votes - 2605
The increased pay packet was offered to barristers by the new Justice Secretary, Brandon Lewis.
The Justice Secretary said: "Since starting this job five weeks ago, my priority has been to end this strike action and reduce delays for victims, and I'm glad that barristers have agreed to return to work.
"This breakthrough is a result of coming together and restarting what I hope to be a constructive relationship as we work to drive down the backlog and ensure victims see justice done sooner."
The 15% rise in fees for government-funded defence work was recommended to ministers almost a year ago.
Are the barristers still on strike?
Barristers voted to end strike action by 57% and will return to work as normal from tomorrow (Tuesday, October 10), according to the Criminal Bar Association.
Are barristers on strike in Wales?
Barristers in Wales undertook strike action alongside colleagues in England. This came amid cuts to legal aid by the UK Government which saw some barristers earning less than the minimum wage.
How much do barristers earn?
For those with 10+ years of experience, yearly salaries can range from £65,000 to around one million pounds.
For an employed barrister with less than ten years of experience, salaries can be as low as £25,000. Many barristers also work extra unpaid hours, lowering their average hourly wage.
What will happen to the court backlog after barristers vote to end strike?
There is currently a court backlog numbering in the tens of thousands after weeks of strike action made it impossible for cases to be heard in England and Wales.
Barristers will have to now work through 60,000 cases in the backlog. It is currently unclear how this will be reduced.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here