Polly is a solicitor in the firm’s Human Rights and Public Inquiries teams. Polly is committed to protecting civil liberties and representing the rights of individuals who have suffered serious injustice at the hands of the state, in particular the police. She works hard to build strong, understanding and trusting relationships with all her clients, to ensure that each person she works with feels supported in accessing justice and able to navigate what can be an intimidating system.
Since joining Saunders Law in April 2019, Polly completed her training contact with the firm, and has gained experience working on a wide range of cases, including:
- Civil claims and police complaints following police assaults, wrongful arrests, unlawful stop and search, malicious prosecution, and police failures to investigate.
- Representing bereaved families in inquests following a death in the custody of, or following contact with, the police and/or other state bodies.
- Discrimination, on the basis of race, disability, sexuality, and/or gender.
- Victims Rights to Review scheme (VRR) challenges on behalf of victims of crimes, for example challenges relating to police failures to investigate incidents of domestic and sexual violence, or to investigate police misconduct.
- Judicial Review challenges of unlawful decisions by state bodies, such as a case relating to the CPS’ decision not to prosecute a police officer who had used excessive force against an individual for assault.
- Public Inquiries into state failures, including the Infected Blood Inquiry and matters relating to the Grenfell Tower Inquiry.
- Group litigation claims, such as the Hillsborough victims’ misfeasance litigation.
Polly is also a member of the Police Actions Lawyers Group (PALG) and Inquest Lawyers Group (ILG).
Prior to joining the firm, Polly worked as a family caseworker, primarily supporting victims of domestic and sexual violence, and volunteered with the National Centre for Domestic Violence. She continues to be an advocate for victims of abuse who have been failed by the state in her current practice.
Having a passion for equal access to justice, Polly has also worked at free legal advice centres, University House and Toynbee Hall, at North London Refugee Drop-In Centres and at the London Legal Support Trust.
Polly holds a First Class Undergraduate Degree from University College London (UCL) and passed both the Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) and Legal Practice Course (LPC) with Distinction.