Justice
Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...
Priyasath Dep
PC ( si, ප්රියසාත් ඩෙප් ; born October 12, 1953) is a
Sri Lankan judge and lawyer. He was the 45th
Chief Justice of Sri Lanka
The Chief Justice of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is the head of the judiciary of Sri Lanka and the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. Established in 1801, the Chief Justice is one of ten Supreme Court justices; the other nine are t ...
and a former
Solicitor General of Sri Lanka.
Early life and education
Dep's father was Arthur C. Dep a police officer, who retired as a
Deputy Inspector General of Police
A Deputy Inspector General of Police (abbreviated as DIG) is a high-ranking official position in Police in Bangladesh, India, Kenya, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan, Nigeria and Sri Lanka.
India
Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) is a rank ...
. Educated at
St. Joseph's College,
Colombo
Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo m ...
, where he excelled in studies, athletics, rugby, and soccer. Dep obtained a
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...
in Development Studies at the
University of Colombo
(Buddhih Sarvatra Bhrajate)
, mottoeng = ''Wisdom Enlightens''
, established =
, endowment = LKR 1.461 billion . He represented the university in rugby and cricket.
Legal career
Studying law at the
Sri Lanka Law College, he was called to bar in October 1976 and began his legal practice. In January 1978, he joined the
Attorney General's Department as a State Counsel. In February 1989 he was promoted to Senior State Counsel and in February 1996 he was promoted to Deputy Solicitor General and Additional Solicitor General in October 1999. He was appointed a
President's Counsel
President's Counsel (postnominal PC) is an eminent lawyer who is appointed by the President of Sri Lanka to be one of the "President's Counsel learned in the law". The term is also recognized as an honorific which replaced the practice of appoi ...
in April 2000. In 2007, he was appointed Solicitor General and served in this post till 2011. During his tenure in the Attorney General’s Department, Dep won a scholarship by the
Dutch Government
The politics of the Netherlands take place within the framework of a parliamentary representative democracy, a constitutional monarchy, and a decentralised unitary state.''Civil service systems in Western Europe'' edited by A. J. G. M. Bekk ...
that enabled him to acquire a post-graduate diploma in
international law
International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...
at the
International Institute of Social Studies
The International Institute of Social Studies (ISS) of Erasmus University Rotterdam is an independent and international graduate school of policy-oriented critical social science. ISS was established in 1952 by Dutch universities and the Neth ...
in
The Hague
The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital o ...
. As a prosecutor he was involved in the Amarapala (Deputy Director of Customs) Murder case, Inoka Sevwandi Murder and the Sujith Prasanna Perera (Superintendent of Customs) Murder. He had served as the head of the Criminal Division of the Attorney General’s Department.
Judaical career
In 2011, he left the Attorney General’s Department, when he was appointed to a
Puisne Justice of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. On February 27, 2017 he was nominated by the Constitutional Council as the 45th
Chief Justice of Sri Lanka
The Chief Justice of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is the head of the judiciary of Sri Lanka and the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. Established in 1801, the Chief Justice is one of ten Supreme Court justices; the other nine are t ...
and was sworn in in March.
References
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dep, Priyasath
Chief justices of Sri Lanka
Puisne Justices of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka
Sinhalese judges
20th-century Sri Lankan people
21st-century Sri Lankan people
Solicitors General of Sri Lanka
Living people
1953 births
Sri Lankan judges on the courts of Fiji
Supreme Court of Fiji justices