The government said it was investing £212m in the Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service, £86.5m in criminal justice social work and £195m in the legal aid system.
But the Law Society of Scotland said the legal aid fund was going up by just 3%, despite “an ongoing crisis in access to justice.”
The society’s president Patricia Thom said the budget was a “bitter blow for legal aid” and access to justice in Scotland.
She added: “The finance secretary speaks about ‘delivery and hope’, yet the Scottish government has failed on both counts for people who can’t afford the legal help they need.
“We’ve consistently highlighted the need for substantial reforms and an urgent fees uplift to put the system back on a viable and sustainable footing.
“If the Scottish government cares about access to justice, it cannot afford to ignore this issue until after the election.”
Justice Secretary Angela Constance said: “We will invest £4.6bn across the justice system in 2026-27 to support frontline services, build safe communities, reduce crime and re-offending and support victims and witnesses.
“This includes record funding of more than £1.7bn for policing, and a further £3m to tackle retail crime to build on its successes in 2025-26; almost £436m for the SFRS and over £1.bn for prisons and community justice.”