Court of Appeal of Sri Lanka
Appellate court in Sri Lanka
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Court of Appeal of Sri Lanka, commonly known as the Appeal Court, is the second most senior court in the Sri Lankan legal system, with only the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka above it. Established in 1971, under the Court of Appeal Act No. 44 of 1971, the Appeal Court has jurisdiction to hear appeals from the High Court or any lower court; its own decisions may be additionally appealed to the Supreme Court. The Appeal Court is headed by the president of the Court of Appeal.[1]
| Court of Appeal of Sri Lanka | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Interactive map of Court of Appeal of Sri Lanka | |
| 6.93507°N 79.86172°E | |
| Established | 1971 |
| Jurisdiction | Sri Lanka |
| Location | Hulftsdorp, Colombo, Sri Lanka |
| Coordinates | 6.93507°N 79.86172°E |
| Authorised by | Government of Sri Lanka |
| Appeals to | Supreme Court of Sri Lanka |
| Number of positions | 20 |
| Website | courtofappeal |
| President of the Court of Appeal | |
| Currently | Rohantha Abeysooriya |
| Since | 19 June 2025 |
Composition
Size of court
The Court of Appeal consists of the president of the Court of Appeal and not fewer than six and not more than nineteen other judges, as stipulated in Article 137 of the Constitution of Sri Lanka.[2] The court was expanded to its current size on 29 October 2020 through the Twentieth Amendment to the Constitution. Previously, it comprised the president of the Court of Appeal and a maximum of eleven other judges.[3][4]
Dress
Appeal Court judges wear dark purple gowns when attending court. On special ceremonial occasions (such as ceremonial sittings of the Appeal Court) they wear dark purple gowns, barrister's bands, mantle, and a long wig.
Judges of the Court
As of 6 June 2026, the most recent judges to join the court are Rohantha Abeysooriya, Francis Gunawardena and Adithya Patabendige, whose tenures commenced on 19 June 2025.
- As of 19 May 2026
| Current Judges of the Court of Appeal[5] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Judge | Appointed by | Start date / length of service |
Current status | Ref. |
| – | Rohantha Abeysooriya | – | – |
|
[6] |
| 1 | Ratnapriya Gurusinghe | G. Rajapaksa | 1 December 2020 5 years, 187 days |
Judge | [7] |
| 2 | Mayadunne Corea | G. Rajapaksa | 1 December 2020 5 years, 187 days |
Judge | [7] |
| 3 | Prabaharan Kumararatnam | G. Rajapaksa | 1 December 2020 5 years, 187 days |
Judge | [7] |
| 4 | Sasi Mahendran | G. Rajapaksa | 14 June 2021 4 years, 357 days |
Judge | [8] |
| 5 | Sanjeeva Morais | Wickremesinghe | 7 August 2023 2 years, 303 days |
Judge | [9] |
| 6 | Damitha Thotawatta | Wickremesinghe | 6 September 2024 1 year, 273 days |
Judge | [10] |
| 7 | Amal Ranaraja | Wickremesinghe | 6 September 2024 1 year, 273 days |
Judge | [10] |
| 8 | Mahen Gopallawa | Wickremesinghe | 6 September 2024 1 year, 273 days |
Judge | [10] |
| 9 | Sarath Dissanayake | Dissanayake | 9 January 2025 1 year, 148 days |
Judge | [11] |
| 10 | Pradeep Hettiarachchi | Dissanayake | 9 January 2025 1 year, 148 days |
Judge | [11] |
| 11 | Sumudu Premachandra | Dissanayake | 11 March 2025 1 year, 87 days |
Judge | [12] |
| 12 | K. Priyantha Fernando | Dissanayake | 11 March 2025 1 year, 87 days |
Judge | [12] |
| 13 | Annalingam Premashankar | Dissanayake | 11 March 2025 1 year, 87 days |
Judge | [12] |
| 14 | Francis Gunawardena | Dissanayake | 19 June 2025 352 days |
Judge | [6] |
| 15 | Adithya Patabendige | Dissanayake | 19 June 2025 352 days |
Judge | [6] |
| 16 | Vacant | ||||
| 17 | Vacant | ||||
| 18 | Vacant | ||||
| 19 | Vacant | ||||
