For the first time, the newly appointed President’s Counsel affixed their oaths using digital signatures
Historic Digital Signing at President’s Counsel Oaths Ceremony
By Adheesha Kulatunga
In a landmark event at the Supreme Court’s ceremonial court today (20th November 2025), four Additional Solicitor-Generals (ASGs) were formally sworn in as President’s Counsel in recognition of their legal acumen and service to the official bar over the past three decades. The ceremony was imbued with historic significance as, for the first time, the newly appointed President’s Counsel affixed their oaths using digital signatures, marking a symbolic and practical step forward towards the broader initiative to digitalise the Court system, spearheaded by His Lordship the Chief Justice Preethi Padman Surasena himself.
The inductees who are officers of the Attorney-General’s Department are namely; Hiranjan Peiris ASG, Azard Navavi ASG, Lakmali Karunanayake ASG, and Sudarshana De Silva ASG.
Upon the taking of the solemn oath, the declarations of the newly sworn in President’s Counsel were signed electronically; a seemingly subtle yet pivotal moment in Sri Lanka’s legal history. The importance of this occasion was affirmed by His Lordship the Chief Justice in His Lordship’s concluding remarks in which congratulations on behalf of the bench and the bar were extended whilst noting that these appointees will go down in the annals of legal history as the first persons in the legal sphere to be inducted utilising their digital signature.
