THE LEGAL Services Commission in Northern Ireland has published, for the first time, the earnings of solicitors and barristers from public funds.
The commission published a list of the top 100 earners in both professions for the legal years 2004/2005 and 2005/2006, which revealed that the top-earning solicitors' firm earned almost £2 million in 2004/05, and the top-earning barrister earned more than £500,000 that year.
Kevin Winters and Co is the solicitors' firm which earned most from the state in both years, making £1,943,084, exclusive of VAT and counsel fees, in 2004/05, and £1,664,767, exclusive of VAT and counsel fees, in 2005/06.
The highest-earning barrister in 2004/05 was J Treacy, who earned £543,837 exclusive of VAT. In 2005/06, the top-earning position was occupied by JF McCrudden, who earned £418,878. That year the top 10 earners were all men, though in 2004/05 the ninth position was occupied by EM McDermott, who earned £291,540.
Responding to the publication of the figures, the Bar Council of Northern Ireland said it supported the publication of the figures. "The public is entitled to know how public funds are spent."
The statement said the amounts received in any one year would cover work done over a number of years on a variety of cases, including complex fraud cases and cases involving the safety and protection of children. It also said that barristers would have to pay a proportion of fees to cover professional overheads like any self-employed person.
The Law Society of Northern Ireland, representing solicitors, said that the headline figures represent turnover.
"Solicitors' firms are small businesses and as such they have to finance their business costs which include staff wages and national insurance contributions, professional fees and insurance, rent . . ." and other overheads.
It added that the figures did not show the size of the firms or the volume of work and the number of people helped.
NI lawyers: the top earners
JF McCrudden £418,878
JE Grant £366,224
J Kearney £327,563
PT McDonald £317,374
AM Cinnamond £234,323
JA Gallagher £213,683
DP Fee £210,311
FP O'Donoghue £207,601
B MacDonald £204,850
CDC Adair £199,067
10 top-earning Northern Ireland solicitors' firms 2005/06
Kevin Winters Co £1,664,767
Trevor Smyth Co £1,094,782
Madden Finucane £730,945
McCann McCann £718,945
Donnelly Wall £572,204
McConnell, Kelly Co £522,731
McKenna Sweeney McKeown Solicitors £486,358
MacElhatton Co £455,796
Archer Heaney Magee Solicitors £449,218
Patrick Fahy £437,900