Deshamanya Deshamanya (; ; Pride of the Nation) is the second-highest national honour of Sri Lanka awarded by the Government of Sri Lanka as a civil honour. It is awarded for "''highly meritorious service''", and is conventionally used as a title or prefi ...

Miliani Edward Claude Sansoni (18 November 1904 – 1979) was a Ceylonese judge, who served as the 32nd

Chief Justice of Ceylon 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 t ...

Early life and education

Born on 18 November 1904 to Claude Aldons Sansoni, JP, a

Proctor Proctor (a variant of ''wikt:procurator, procurator'') is a person who takes charge of, or acts for, another. The title is used in England and some other English-speaking countries in three principal contexts: # In law, a proctor is a historica ...

and Hilda Gratiaen, daughter of Edward Stork Gratiaen, Colonial Surgeon, Ceylon Medical Department and Sophia Jane Vander Smagt. He had a brother Hildon Claude Sansoni and a sister Sylvia Carmen, who married Clinton Bryan Fernando. His brother Hildon Claude Sansoni was a

proctor Proctor (a variant of ''wikt:procurator, procurator'') is a person who takes charge of, or acts for, another. The title is used in England and some other English-speaking countries in three principal contexts: # In law, a proctor is a historica ...

and a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

in the Ceylon Royal Navy Reserve, who served as an extra aide-de-camp to the

governor general of Ceylon The governor-general of Ceylon was the representative of the Ceylonese monarch in the Dominion of Ceylon from the country's independence in 1948 until it became the republic of Sri Lanka in 1972. History There were four governors-general. Sir ...

. Hildon married the artist

Barbara Sansoni Kala Suri Barbara Sansoni (22 April 1928 – 23 April 2022) was a Sri Lankan designer, artist, colourist, entrepreneur, and writer. She was known for her works in architecture, textile designs, and handwoven panels. She founded the Barefoot t ...

, who founded the

Barefoot Being barefoot is the state of not wearing any footwear. There are health benefits and some risks associated with going barefoot. Shoes, while they offer protection, can limit the flexibility, strength, and mobility of the foot and can lead ...

textile design company. She gave birth to two sons; Dominic and Simon. Sansoni was educated at

Royal College Colombo Royal College, Colombo also known as; Royal Colombo, Colombo Royal College or Colombo Royal) is a boys' school located in Cinnamon Gardens, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Started by Joseph Marsh in 1835, it was established as the Colombo Academy by Si ...

, where he was the editor of the ''Royal College Magazine''. He graduated from the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

with a BA degree and was called to the bar as a

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

from the

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wale ...

. On his return to Ceylon, he was enrolled as an

advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. List of country legal systems, Different countries and legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a ba ...

Judicial career

After practicing the

unofficial bar The unofficial bar in Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separa ...

, he was appointed Acting Magistrate, Dandagamuwa in December 1937 and thereafter Acting Magistrate,

Kandy Kandy (, ; , ) is a major city located in the Central Province, Sri Lanka, Central Province of Sri Lanka. It was the last capital of the Sinhalese monarchy from 1469 to 1818, under the Kingdom of Kandy. The city is situated in the midst of ...

. He joined the Ceylon Judicial Service on 1 July 1939, on probation in the Class II, Grade I as Magistrate, Kandy and was confirmed in service on 1 July 1940. Promoted to Class II, Grade III on 1 April 1942, he was appointed

District Judge District Judge may refer to: * A United States federal judge, appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate * A judge in a state court (United States), where the state is divided into judicial districts * * A judge in the district courts ...

Tangalle Tangalle ( Sinhala තංගල්ල , ) (also known as Tangalla) is a large town in Hambantota District, Southern Province, Sri Lanka, governed by an Urban Council. It is one of the largest towns in southern province. It is located south of Co ...

. He went on to serve as District Judge,

Batticaloa Batticaloa (, ''Maṭṭakkaḷappu'', ; , ''Maḍakalapuwa'', ) is a major city in the Eastern Province, Sri Lanka, and its former capital. It is the administrative capital of the Batticaloa District. The city is the seat of the Eastern Univers ...

(28 August 1944); Acting District Judge, Badulla (16 April 1945); Acting District Judge,

Panadura Panadura (; ) is a main city in Kalutara District, Western Province, Sri Lanka, Western Province in Sri Lanka. It is located approximately south of Colombo. Panadura was an electoral district in Sri Lanka until 1989 and is surrounded all sides b ...

(19 August 1946); District Judge,

Kegalle Kegalle (; ) is a large town in Sabaragamuwa Province of Sri Lanka. It is located on the Colombo–Kandy road, approximately from Colombo, from Kandy, from Kurunegala and from Avissavella. It is the main town in the Kegalle District, which i ...

(15 January 1947); Additional District Judge, Colombo (1 April 1949). He was promoted to Class I, Grade II on 1 January 1946, Supernumerary Officer (Class I, Grade II) on 1 March 1948 and Officer Class I, Grade I in March 1949 in the Ceylon Judicial Service. Between March 1949 and September 1953, he served as Additional District Judge, Colombo; Acting District Judge, Colombo and District Judge, Colombo. On 15 September 1953 he was appointed Commissioner of Assize and promoted to officer Special Class in the Ceylon Judaical Service on 9 November 1953. He was thereafter appointed to the

Supreme Court of Ceylon The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka (; ) is the highest court in Sri Lanka and the final judicial instance of record. Established in 1801 and empowered to exercise its powers subject to the provisions of the Constitution of Sri Lanka, the Supreme C ...

as a

Puisne Justice Puisne judge and puisne justice () are terms for an ordinary judge or a judge of lesser rank of a particular court. The term comes from a combination of the two French words, (since, later) and (born) which have been combined as or ; meaning ...

. He was appointed in 1964 as

succeeding Hema Henry Basnayake and served as Chief Justice until 1966. He was succeeded by Hugh Norman Gregory Fernando. He chaired the '' Sansoni Commission'' that investigated the riots of 1977.

Honors

He was conferred the national honour of the title of

in the first ever Independence Day National Honours list in 1986.

Family

He married Phyllis Frances Ondaartje daughter of Aelian Owen Morgan Ondaartje,

JP, UM In Sri Lanka, a Justice of the Peace and Unofficial magistrate (also known as Acting magistrate) is a judicial appointment made by the Minister of Justice to a particular jurisdiction under the ''Judicature Act No 02 of 1978''. An Unofficial magist ...

, a

and Elsie Thompson Staiunton at the St. Michael's and All Angels' Church, Colombo on 4 October 1930. They had a daughter, Tania Sansoni and son, Miliani Philip Sansoni.

References

External links

"A Historic Injustice" A Response to Nihal Jayawickreme’s article in the Sunday Island of 15.1.2012A Response To Nihal Jayawickreme
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sansoni, M 1904 births Year of death missing 20th-century Sri Lankan people Burgher people Sri Lankan lawyers Sri Lankan barristers Chief justices of Sri Lanka Alumni of Royal College, Colombo Alumni of the University of London Members of Gray's Inn Deshamanya Sri Lankan people of Dutch descent Sri Lankan people of Italian descent