Outgoing CJ emphasises ethical integrity, constitutional values, and collaborative legal development

Outgoing Chief Justice Murdu Fernando, PC, has emphasised that the judiciary must not only defend the Constitution but also act as its active stewards. “If the Constitution is the beating heart of our country, then the citizens who are sheltered by it will be the blood that flows along its veins.”

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In support of this view, she cited the renowned legal philosopher H. L.A. Hart: “What surely is most needed in order to make men clear sighted in confronting the official abuse of power, is that they should preserve the sense that the certification of something as legally valid is not conclusive of the question of obedience ... its demands must in the end be submitted to a moral scrutiny.” Ms. Fernando said

This, she said, demands that legal validity be rooted in ethical legitimacy.

She was addressing the inaugural session of the BASL Legal Symposium 2025 at Hikkaduwa.

The Chief Justice stressed the importance of ethical integrity, constitutional values, and collaborative legal development in steering Sri Lanka towards a "Just Republic." This was the first Legal Symposium of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka, held after the assumption of office by Rajeev Amarasuriya as the President of the Association.

In her keynote address, The Chief Justice expressed appreciation to the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) for organising these Legal Symposiums and commended its efforts to engage outstation branches with the same vigour as its Metropolitan counterpart. "This symposium, hosted in the South, amply showcases the BASL's recognition of its outstation branches," she noted, praising the inclusive outreach.