Advocate Mhairi Richards QC received more than £500,000 in legal aid fees last year - the first time a woman has been the highest earner in Scotland.

Ms Richards was paid £505,000 in legal assistance fees over the course of 2016/17, ahead of Gordon Jackson QC who collected £364,000, and Donald Findlay QC who earned £362,000.

The figures were issued by the Scottish Legal Aid Board (SLAB) as it published its annual report showing activity in the last financial year.

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The total cost to the taxpayer of providing legal assistance in Scotland amounted to £135.7 million in 2016/17, down from £137.8 million the previous year.

SLAB chief executive Colin Lancaster said: "2016/17 has been a year of good performance for the organisation during a continued period of organisational change and a complex external environment.

"We developed a new three-year corporate plan, which takes us up to March 2020. As part of this process, our board agreed new strategic objectives for the organisation.

"The plan focuses on operational excellence, with a vision that we will transform the administration of legal aid.

"Although a significant focus of the corporate plan is on our internal operations and culture, everything that we do in pursuance of it will also aim to deliver positive outcomes for those seeking, accessing, and delivering legal aid."

The Law Society of Scotland voiced concern at the drop in legal aid spending overall.

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Society president Graham Matthews said: "Legal aid is a vital public service.

"It helps people who are going through some of the most challenging circumstances in their lives, from relationship breakdown and its impact on families, to those facing eviction from their home or have been charged with an offence ... Having an efficient and effective legal aid system is a key factor in ensuring we have an effective justice system as a whole."

He went on: "Members of the public are right to expect an efficient service which works to resolve legal problems quickly and effectively.

"However we don't believe the drop in legal aid spending correlates with a drop in legal need.

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"The continued lack of investment is eroding access to justice for communities across Scotland and we remain concerned about people's ability to access publicly funded legal advice and services in their local communities, particularly for those outwith the main urban areas."