Sri Lanka Judicial Service Association writes to President

16-Jul-2026

.

The Sri Lanka Judicial Service Association has written to President Anura Kumara Dissanayake expressing its opposition to the government’s efforts to increase the retirement age of judges of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal.

The Sri Lanka Judicial Service Association, which is the only organisation representing all District Court judges and Magistrates in Sri Lanka, has officially conveyed its unanimous opposition to the proposed retirement age extension plan in writing to the President.

In the letter addressed to President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, the Judicial Service Association clearly stated that it does not agree with the proposed amendment to Article 107(5) of the Constitution to extend the statutory retirement age of Supreme Court and Court of Appeal judges.

At an emergency special general meeting held on July 11, 65 District Court judges and Magistrates who participated in the meeting unanimously voted in favour of a resolution opposing the extension of the retirement age through a secret ballot.

The decision was reached amid controversy following the sudden resignation of Magistrate Pasan Amarasinghe, who served as the President of the Association.

The official letter was sent to the President bearing the signatures of Judicial Service Association Vice President Magistrate Chamara Wickramanayake and Secretary Magistrate Suranga Munasinghe.

Earlier, the Bar Association of Sri Lanka, representing more than 26,000 lawyers, along with the Colombo Law Society and the Commonwealth Lawyers Association, had strongly opposed the proposed constitutional amendment, warning that it could undermine judicial independence and public confidence in the judiciary.

It is significant that lower court judges have now also joined in expressing opposition to the proposed amendment.