Balbir Singh retains his title

05/03/2008

Balbir Singh, head of Equity Chambers is the highest paid legal aid criminal barrister for two years running, latest figures have shown.

He topped the list of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and received close to £1 million from criminal legal aid work, only slightly less than the previous year.

The ministry has explained the high figures are due to a number of factors and do not represent cash payments to each solicitor.

"There are a variety of strict controls on legal aid fees," it said. "In some of these cases fees were scrutinised and assessed independently by the courts as being fair and reasonable for the work done."

The ministry was also keen to point out his pay was not typical of what barristers should expect to be paid.

"These are the top annual payments, and in some cases actually represent payment for work that took place over several years."

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