Members of the Criminal Bar Association (CBA) last month voted overwhelmingly in support of the action, the latest phase in a campaign of industrial action which has rumbled on since November 2024.

The withdrawal of services coincides with the coming into effect at last of a long-promised 16 per cent uplift in legal aid fees, backdated to 1 December 2024 — one of the key recommendations of an independent review led by retired judge Tom Burgess, which was completed in August 2024.

However, the Bar Council of Northern Ireland said in a statement this morning that the increase “has come too late and fallen significantly short of what is required to stabilise a system in crisis”.

For her part, the justice minister, Naomi Long, has condemned barristers for imposing “further trauma and stress on victims and witnesses” in pursuit of what she calls “unrealistic and unaffordable” demands.

The Lady Chief Justice of Northern Ireland, Dame Siobhan Keegan, has suggested resolving the situation through mediation between the CBA and the Bar Council on one side and the Department of Justice on the other.

The Bar Council reiterated this morning that it is willing to take part in mediation and said it remains “hopeful that the Department will agree to do so”.

“The Bar Council understands and acknowledges that this action is being taken by members of the Criminal Bar Association as a last resort, and that criminal barristers stand disillusioned and disheartened but determined to highlight the case for appropriate and fair remuneration,” it added.

“The alarm has been sounded for a significant period of time and the access to justice crisis deserves urgent attention and urgent action.

“Concurrently, the Bar Council acknowledges that this escalated action will have a significant impact on Northern Ireland’s criminal justice system, including upon victims of crime, defendants, civilian witnesses, and those who are due to serve on juries.

“Criminal barristers want to be in court, representing their clients, running and resolving criminal cases — cases that often involve deeply complex, serious, and traumatic matters.

“The Criminal Bar Association has not taken the decision to withdraw its services lightly. Indeed, it comes after an extended period of patient forbearance amidst a steadily worsening crisis, a crisis which the Department of Justice appears to be reluctant even to acknowledge.

“The Bar Council and the CBA remain open to engagement with the Department of Justice, even at this late stage.”

The Department of Justice has been contacted for comment.