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# Sri Lanka’s Top Judges Weigh an Amendment That Could Extend Their Own Tenure
- URL: https://www.jaffnamonitor.com/sri-lankas-top-judges-weigh-an-amendment-that-could-extend-their-own-tenure/
- Published: 2026-09-01T04:51:10.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-01T13:01:35.000Z
- Author: Our Reporter
- Tags: JM COURTS, August 2026, JM Exclusive

**COLOMBO, Sri Lanka —** The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka was to begin hearing challenges on Tuesday to a constitutional amendment that would extend the working lives of the judges deciding the case. Before any argument on the amendment itself, the court faced a preliminary question about its own composition: whether five judges are enough.

Chief Justice Preethi Padman Surasena announced the five-member bench on Monday and will preside over it. Sitting with him are Justices Achala Wengappuli, Arjuna Obeyesekere, Sampath Abeykoon and Gihan Kulatunga. The four judges immediately below the Chief Justice in seniority were passed over in favor of more junior colleagues.

The 22nd Amendment would raise the retirement age of Supreme Court judges to 67 from 65 and of Court of Appeal judges to 65 from 63, and would increase the number of judges the Court of Appeal may seat. Harshana Nanayakkara, the Minister of Justice and National Integration, presented the bill to Parliament on Aug. 18, alongside a related bill amending the Judicature Act. It was gazetted on Aug. 7 amid objections from the legal profession.

Petitioners contend that allowing Parliament to alter the tenure of sitting judges would erode judicial independence and set a precedent for political authorities to adjust judicial terms after appointments are made. Many argue that the bill offends Article 3 of the Constitution, which vests sovereignty in the people, and that it can therefore be enacted only with a two-thirds parliamentary majority and approval at a referendum.

The Bar Association of Sri Lanka, one of the petitioners, had asked that the challenges be heard by the full court, pointing to the unusual position of judges ruling on legislation that could benefit them. Last week the association also filed a motion asking the chief justice to consider recusing himself, and said that if he did so, he should constitute a bench of all the remaining judges. He named the five-member panel instead.

M.A. Sumanthiran, the president’s counsel expected to lead the association’s team, will renew the request in open court, according to people familiar with the preparations, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case publicly. He is also expected to argue that the request itself should be decided by all the judges of the court — a position that, if accepted, would take the question out of the hands of the five appointed to answer it.

The court could therefore have to rule on its own composition before hearing a word about the amendment.

The hearing is also expected to draw an unusually large turnout of counsel. More than 100 lawyers may record appearances for the Bar Association’s petition alone, the same people said, among them lawyers for regional bar associations who intend to place their opposition on the record. With dozens of petitions and separate teams behind many of them, lawyers involved in the case said the recording of appearances could consume much of the day.

The Supreme Court must communicate its determination to the Speaker of Parliament within three weeks. The government has said it will abide by the ruling, which will determine whether the proposed amendment can proceed through Parliament in its present form or whether changes will be required before lawmakers can take it further.