The Bar Association of Sri Lanka (shortened to BASL) is the
Bar Association in
Sri Lanka. The Institute was established in 1974, amalgamating the ''Bar Council of Sri Lanka'' which represented the
Advocates
An advocate is a professional in the field of law. Different countries' legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a barrister or a solicitor. However, ...
and ''Law Society of Sri Lanka'' represented the
Proctors
Proctor's Theatre (officially stylized as Proctors since 2007; however, the marquee retains the apostrophe) is a theatre and former vaudeville house located in Schenectady, New York, United States. Many famous artists have performed there, notably ...
, after the amalgamation of both branches into a group of practitioners called the Attorneys-at-law under the ''Justice Law No. 44 of 1973 ''. Membership is optional for any Attorney-at-law. Traditionally the President of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka is considered the head of the
unofficial bar.
[{{cite news , title=‘GOODBYE TO FIRST-EVER LADY CJ OF SRI LANKA’: BASL PRESIDENT , url=https://www.mfa.gov.lk/goodbye-to-first-ever-lady-cj-of-sri-lanka-basl-president/ , accessdate=4 May 2020 , publisher=Daily FT]
Past Presidents
*
Hector Wilfred Jayewardene
Deshamanya Hector Wilfred "Harry" Jayewardene, QC (November 3, 1916 - April 20, 1990) was a prominent Sri Lankan lawyer. In 1979 he was chairman of a UNESCO conference on human rights in Bangkok and later chairman of the Sri Lanka Foundation I ...
, QC (1975 - 1977)
*
Eardley Perera, PC (1977 - 1979)
* A. C. Gooneratne, QC (1979 - 1981)
*
A. C. de Zoysa (1981 - 1983)
* Herman J C Perera (1983 - 1985)
* Nimal Senanayake, PC (1985 - 1987)
*
H. L. de Silva, PC (1987 - 1989)
* Desmond Fernando, PC (1989 - 1991)
*
Ranjith Abeysuriya, PC (1991 - 1993)
* D. W. Abeyakoon, PC (1993 - 1995)
* N R M Daluwatte, PC (1995 - 1997)
* Romesh de Silva, PC (1997 - 1999)
* Upali A. Gooneratne, PC (1999 - 2001)
* Ajantha W. Athukorala (2001 - 2003)
* Ananda Wijesekera, PC (2003 - 2004)
* M Ikram Mohamed, PC (2004 - 2005)
* Desmond Fernando, PC (2005 - 2006)
* Nihal Jayamanne, PC (2006 - 2008)
* W. Dayaratne, PC (2008 - 2010)
*
Shibly Aziz, PC (2010 - 2012)
*
Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe
Wijeyadasa Rajapakse, MP, PC (born 16 March 1959) is a Sri Lankan lawyer and politician. He is the current Minister of Justice and previously served in the same ministry from 2015 to 2017. He was the Prime Minister's nominee for the Constituti ...
, PC (2012 - 2013)
* Upul Jayasuriya, PC (2013 - 2015)
* Geoffrey Alagaratnam, PC (2015 - 2017)
* U. R. De Silva, PC (2017 - 2019)
*
Kalinga Indatissa, PC (2019 - 2021)
*
Saliya Pieris, PC (2021 - 2023 )
See also
*
Attorney General's Department (Sri Lanka)
References
External links
website
Sri Lanka
Organizations established in 1974
Professional associations based in Sri Lanka
Bar associations of Asia
Law of Sri Lanka