Arthur Ngirakelsong (February 28, 1941 – November 16, 2022) was a Palauan jurist who served as the chief justice of Palau from 1992 to 2020. Ngirakelsong was born on December 28, 1941. He obtained a masters degree from the

University of Hawaiʻi The University of Hawaiʻi System is a public college and university system in Hawaii. The system confers associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees through three universities, seven community colleges, an employment training center, ...

in 1967. In 1974, he became one of the first

Micronesians The Micronesians or Micronesian peoples are various closely related ethnic groups native to Micronesia, a region of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean. They are a part of the Austronesian ethnolinguistic group, which has an Urheimat in Taiwan. Eth ...

to earn a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

when he graduated from

Rutgers Law School Rutgers Law School is the law school of Rutgers University, with classrooms in Newark and Camden, New Jersey. It is the largest public law school and the 10th largest law school, overall, in the United States. Each class in the three-year J.D. pr ...

. He worked as a staff attorney for the Micronesian Constitutional Convention, where he was one of the main drafters of the Bill of Rights of the

Constitution of the Federated States of Micronesia The Constitution of the Federated States of Micronesia is the supreme law of the Federated States of Micronesia. It was adopted in 1979. History Constitutional drafting began in June 1975. It was ratified on October 1, 1978, and took effect on ...

, and legal counsel for the

Congress of the Federated States of Micronesia A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

. Ngirakelsong was appointed an associate justice of the

Supreme Court of Palau The Supreme Court of Palau is the Supreme court, highest court of Palau. Article X of the Constitution of Palau, Constitution vests the Supreme Court with judicial power and provides for its operation and jurisdiction. The Supreme Court is divi ...

on 14 July 1986 by President

Lazarus Salii Lazarus Eitaro Salii (17 November 1936 – 20 August 1988) was a politician from Palau. He served as the second elected President of Palau from 25 October 1985 until his death by suicide on 20 August 1988, amid bribery allegations. Salii was e ...

. On 13 November 1992, he was elevated to the office of chief justice by President

Ngiratkel Etpison Ngiratkel Etpison (3 May 1924 – 1 August 1997) was a politician and businessman from Palau. Etpison was elected President in 1988 and served from 1989 until 1993, becoming the country’s first elected president to serve a full term in office. ...

after the death of Mamoru Nakamura, the first chief justice of Palau. Ngirakelsong resigned on 1 June 2020 after suffering from a stroke. He died on 16 November 2022, aged 81.

References

1941 births 2022 deaths 20th-century Palauan people 21st-century Palauan people Chief justices of Palau Rutgers Law School alumni University of Hawaiʻi alumni {{Oceania-law-bio-stub