Jayantha Chandrasiri Jayasuriya, PC () is a lawyer who served as the 47th

Chief Justice of Sri Lanka The chief justice of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is the head of the judiciary of Sri Lanka and the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. Established in 1801, the chief justice is one of ten Supreme Court justices; the other nine are ...

from April 2019 to October 2024. Jayasuriya was approved by the Constitutional Council on 26 April 2019 and sworn in three days later on 29 April, succeeding Chief Justice Nalin Perera. He previously served as the 45th

Attorney General of Sri Lanka The attorney general of Sri Lanka is the Sri Lankan government's chief legal adviser, and its primary lawyer in the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. The attorney general is usually a highly respected senior advocate, and is appointed by the ruling go ...

. While serving as Attorney General Jayasuriya defended the sacking of the Prime Minister by the President of Sri Lanka but was over-ruled by the Supreme Court. Jayasuriya controversially requested an extension of the term of office of President Sirisena prior to being made Chief Justice. The Supreme Court overruled that request. Jayasuriya took oath as an Attorney-at-Law of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka in 1982. He joined the Attorney General’s Department as a State Counsel and held the posts of Senior State Counsel, Deputy Solicitor General, Additional Solicitor General, and Senior Additional Solicitor General before being appointed Attorney General. Jayasuriya studied at

Maliyadeva College Maliyadeva College () is a national school controlled by the Sri Lankan central government. It is located in Kurunegala, Sri Lanka, and was established in 1888 by the Buddhist Theosophical Society, led by Colonel Henry Steel Olcott. It is on ...

Career

Permanent representative to the United Nations

On 21 March 2025, the Committee on High Posts in the Parliament of Sri Lanka recommended Jayasuriya's appointment as Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. His appointment was confirmed by the president on 15 May 2025. On 6 June 2025, Jayasuriya presented his

letter of credence A letter of credence (, ) is a formal Diplomatic correspondence, diplomatic letter that designates a diplomat as ambassador to another sovereign state. Commonly known as diplomatic credentials, the letter is addressed from one head of state to an ...

as the Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka, to the Secretary-General of the United Nations

António Guterres António Manuel de Oliveira Guterres (born 30 April 1949) is a Portuguese politician and diplomat who is serving as the ninth and current secretary-general of the United Nations since 2017. A member of the Socialist Party (Portugal), ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jayasuriya, Jayantha Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Sinhalese people Permanent representatives of Sri Lanka to the United Nations Chief justices of Sri Lanka Attorneys general of Sri Lanka President's Counsels (Sri Lanka) Sri Lankan lawyers