Wide support forecast for "strike" by barristers Nigel Lithman, head of the Criminal Bar Association, said the "strike" was backed by almost every chamber and he expected "solid support" for the action. He accused Justice Secretary Chris Grayling of "manipulating" official figures to falsely portray lawyers doing criminal aid work as high-earning "fat cats." The Government plans to cut fees as part of a bid to slash £220 million from the legal aid budget by 2018/19 - slashing them by as much as 30 per cent in the longest and most complex cases. The Ministry of Justice says it is vital to scale back the most expensive such scheme in the world and insists it will remain "very generous" even after the changes. It criticised the action and highlighted figures showing 1,200 barristers judged to be working full time on taxpayer-funded criminal work received £100,000 each in fee income last year. Six barristers picked more than £500,000 each, it said. But Mr Lithman said the same official statistics showed that - after allowing for VAT and other expenses - the average barrister involved in the work earned around £36,000 The Bar Council calculated that it was lower still - around the £27,000 national average, he said, meaning the cuts would push people away from the vital work. "There are simply going to be no people of any ability prepared to do criminal legal aid work," he said. Protests are planned outside court buildings but Mr Lithman said those taking part in the action had made efforts to ensure there was "as little disruption as is proportionate" to cases.