Schona Jolly KC KC > Cloisters > London, England > Barrister Profile
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Schona Jolly KC KC
Position
Schona Jolly QC has a high profile domestic and international practice, with her principal areas of specialism in equality, employment, civil liberties/human rights law, EU and public international law.
Her practice intersects widely with other areas of law, including public, sports and housing law. She works on AI intersecting with equality/human rights, business and human rights matters and advises frequently on positive action. She acts for a wide range of Claimants and Defendants/Respondents (including in group litigation) and is longstanding Panel Counsel to the EHRC. She has several matters currently before the European Court of Human Rights.
Widely sought-after for her strategic advice on litigation and policy in the UK and internationally, especially on equality/human rights issues, she acts and advises for many high profile individuals/organisations, including international NGOS, national bodies across governance, politics, media and entertainment.
Schona is available for mediations and investigations. She is Chair of the Bar Human Rights Committee and Head of Cloisters Human Rights Group.
Career
Called to the Bar 1999; Licence Speciale (European Law) at University of Brussels; BA Jurisprudence, Magdalen College, Oxford.
Contributing author:-
– British Academy: Judicial Independence in Times of Crisis (to be published)
– OUP ‘Equal Pay’ : Introduction to EU law, Brexit and Equal Pay;
– Sweet & Maxwell, ‘Human Rights Practice’: Article 9 ECHR.
– ‘Discrimination in Employment: A Claims Handbook’, LAG, 2013.
Co-author: Age Discrimination Handbook, LAG 2006
Former associate editor of the European Human Rights Reports.
Regular academic/media contributions.
Languages
Legally fluent in French. High level Spanish, Punjabi, Intermediate Hindi/Urdu, Basic Arabic.
Memberships
Bar Human Rights Committee; JUSTICE, ELA, ILA, DLA, IBA, ELBA, ALBA, Women in Sports Law.
Education
University of Brussels (Licence Speciale European Law); Magdalen College, Oxford (BA Jurisprudence).
Lawyer Rankings
London Bar > International human rights and criminal law
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 1London Bar > Employment
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 1Schona Jolly KC – Cloisters ‘Schona is fearless – a hands-on and details-oriented leader. She is a superb cross-examiner and an all-round great advocate.‘
Cloisters is ‘packed with employment law talent‘, housing a team of ‘outstanding counsel‘. The group continues to handle a high volume of complex discrimination cases, and reports an increase in multi-party equal pay claims. The ‘exceptionally talented‘ Caspar Glyn KC is representing more than 8,000 drivers, as claimants, in litigation against Bolt concerning allegations of non-payment of the national minimum wage and holiday pay. In a separate matter, Schona Jolly KC, Rachel Barrett and Ameer Ismail are acting for multiple claimants in claims involving allegations of harassment and discrimination brought against McDonald’s. Daphne Romney KC is ‘a true force to be reckoned with‘, with established expertise in advising on equal pay and whistleblowing claims. Team head Dee Masters is ‘extremely knowledgeable on tribunal practice and procedure‘. In recent developments for the set, Yvette Genn was appointed a Circuit Judge in October 2023, and Anna Beale KC and Sarah Fraser Butlin KC were elevated to silk in March 2024.
London Bar > Sport
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 2Schona Jolly KC – Cloisters ‘Schona is a delight to work with and on the top of her game. She is able to balance compassion and care with fearless advocacy. She gets to the core of an issue quickly and leads with unparalleled expertise in this area.’
London Bar > Administrative law and human rights
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 3Schona Jolly KC –Cloisters ‘Schona is at the top of her game. She is able to balance compassion and care with fearless advocacy. She gets to the core of an issue quickly and leads with unparalleled expertise in this area.’