The Plenary Session on Law of the 14th International Research Conference of KDU was held under the theme ‘Challenges faced by the Sri Lankan Legal System in the context of New Normal’ on 09.09.2021, chaired by His Lordship Jayantha Jayasuriya PC, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka.

The speakers and the topics of their speeches were as follows:

• Hon. Mohamed Ali Sabry PC, Minister of Justice – ‘Sustaining Judicial Power of the People throughout the Pandemic.”
• Hon. Susil Premajayantha, State Minister of Education Reforms, Open Universities and Distance Learning Promotion – ‘The System of Public Administration in the New – Normal Environment.’
• Farzana Jameel PC, Senior Additional Solicitor General – ‘Legal Reforms and the Functioning of Courts in the Era of the New Normal’
• Dr. Joe de Silva, Former Principal of Sri Lanka Law College – ‘Revival of a Past decision to meet Challenges to our Legal Education in the New Normal.’
• Hon. Mohan Peiris, Former Chief Justice of Sri Lanka and the Permanent Representative to the United Nations – ‘Remote Administration of Justice and Equity through Technological Innovations: Judicial Response to a Pandemic.’

The speeches were followed by the launch of the KDU Law Journal (Vol 1, Issue II) in both electronic and print forms.

Technical Sessions on Law were held on 10.09.2021 under the themes, ‘Challenges to the National Security in the Post Pandemic Era: Legal Perspectives’, ‘Novel Trends Emanating from the New Normal and Legal Response by the Corporate Sector’, ‘Advancing the Frontiers of International Law in the Context of a Worldwide Pandemic’ and ‘Constraints in Public Law in Responding to an Unexpected Natural Hazards of Biological Origin’ respectively. The sessions were chaired respectively by Kalinga Indatissa PC, K-Kanag Isvaran PC, Dr. Nihal Jayawickrama and Ms. Kalyani Jayasekera, Head, Department of Civil law, Faculty of Law, KDU.

Papers presented at the Technical Sessions were evaluated by a panel consisting of Dr. Dantha Rodrigo PC, Former Principal, Sri Lanka Law College, Mr. Rajiv Amarasuriya, Secretary, Bar Association of Sri Lanka and Mr. Mahesh Abeynayake, Senior Lecturer, University of Moratuwa. The Award for the Best Paper Presentation was won by Mr. K.A.A.N. Thilakaratne and Major H.S.D. Mendis for their paper titled, ‘Scales of Natural Justice in a Military Summary Trial: A Critical Analysis with Special Reference to Sri Lanka’.

The Poster Session on Law was also held on the 09.09.2021, following the Plenary Session. It was evaluated by a panel chaired by the His Lordship the Chief Justice and comprising Ms. Kalyani Jayasekera, Head, Department of Civil Law and Major Shiran Mendis, Head, Department of Military Law of the KDU Faculty of Law. The Award for the Best Poster Presentation was won by Ms. A.P. Vithanage, presented under the title, ‘Legal Spotlight for Resilience of COVID 19: Public Nuisance in Workplaces.’