Criminal legal aid firms are usually too afraid of rivals poaching their clients to go on strike, but the Lord Chancellor, Michael Gove’s decision to go ahead with a fee cut from today (1st July), has led to a rare outbreak of solidarity between them. Barristers are also joining their solicitor colleagues in protests across the country from today. This joint action could spell serious problems for the criminal justice system within days.   Criminal legal aid solicitors have been driven to take action as the 8.75% fee reduction implemented today means they have been hit with a total cut of 18.5% in just over a year. Last time they threatened to strike was in 2001 and on that occasion the government made a deal. The strike threat then was made in response to plans to introduce compulsory contracts for legal aid work. A last minute fee rise and an agreement to continue the system of payments for police station work were sufficient to avert the threatened action fourteen years ago.   Solicitors in Liverpool led the way last week as they decided not take on cases from today at the new rates of pay. They are also protesting at the imposition of tenders for police and magistrates court duty work. They are joined by their colleagues from the Bar, who have agreed to reinstate their boycott of returns (the system in which Barristers pick-up last minute cases for their colleagues). Liverpool has been joined by Manchester, Birmingham and London amongst other areas.   From talking to practitioners it appears to LAG that support for the strike is widespread. Most significantly, we believe that large firms are joining the action, which will mean that the criminal justice system will be in danger of grinding to a halt soon in many areas. Last year it took nine days of the Bar refusing to take returns for the government to negotiate a settlement with them. In the current dispute with both solicitors and barristers boycotting cases pressure on the government  to settle will be even greater.   An obvious potential settlement offer would be to postpone the fee cut. If the fee cut was delayed to January, those firms who have successfully tendered for contracts would at least have the benefit of greater numbers of cases and the savings of scale, which the government has previously argued would offset the cut in fees. This is probably the minimum offer required to settle this dispute, but Gove’s reputation is such that lawyers will have to remain resolute for at least a week or two to force him into this or other compromise.   pic: Barristers protest last year