National Law Conference 2023: “Navigating Through Crisis The Law’s Role”

National Law Conference held last year

The National Law Conference of 2023 is set to take place on the 12th and 13th of March at the Cinnamon Grand Hotel in Colombo. This esteemed event will be chaired by Mr. Janaprith Fernando, Attorney-at-Law, and inaugurated/opened by a number of distinguished speakers including the Chief Justice of Sri Lanka, the Honourable Jayantha Jayasuriya and US Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Julie Chung.  

The primary goal of this conference is to provide a platform for discourse with numerous experts in their respective fields on how the legal system in Sri Lanka can be used to navigate our country and its people through the current crises, while also facilitating an opportunity to explore safeguarding our futures having learnt from the experience. The conference itself will be divided into multiple plenary sessions as well as two parallel sessions over the course of two days in order to effectively communicate its message, with each session focusing on a specific aspect of the law’s role in navigating through crises.  

Each session will also entail a panel discussion/question and answer period between the panel of experts and members of the audience and provide excellent networking opportunities for all participants.  
The first plenary session, titled “The Crisis, the Legal Framework and its Role in Economic Recovery” will examine the implementation of law in meeting the challenges of the present economic situation while examining how to best exploit the available framework to its potential to support the necessary economic reforms and strengthen accountability of government and individuals in such situations. Also explore future necessary legal reform.  

The primary goal of this conference is to provide a platform for discourse with numerous experts in their respective fields on how the legal system in Sri Lanka can be used to navigate our country and its people through the current crises, while also facilitating an opportunity to explore safeguarding our futures having learnt from the experience

This session will feature a range of experts, including Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe, Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, President’s Counsel Dr. K. Kanag-Isvaran, Mr. Sirikumar Kudagama, Assistant Governor, CBSL, Dr. Arittha Wikramanayake, Precedent Partner at Heritage Partners, Mr. Murtaza Jafferjee, CEO, JB Securities Ltd., and Dr. Dinesha Samararatne, Department of Public and International Law, Faculty of Law, University of Colombo.  

The second plenary session deals with “Investment in Times of Crisis, the Legal Framework and New Developments And Opportunities” and will be elucidated by acclaimed professionals such as Additional Solicitor General Mr. Sumathi Dharmawardena, PC, Mrs. Renuka Weerakone, Attorney-at-Law, Director General, Board of Investment of Sri Lanka, Mr. Naomal Goonewardena, Precedent Partner at Nithya Partners, Mr. Rajeeva Bandaranaike, CEO, Colombo Stock Exchange, and from the Banking Sector the NDB Bank.  
This session encompasses subjects including the importance of investment now, the supporting legal framework such as the Strategic Development Project Act and the structure of the Port City law covering investment opportunities; as well as new opportunities enabled in the energy sector; as well as impediments such as not reaching required standards in accepted ‘ease of doing business’ standards and necessary safeguards in the areas of corruption.  

“Addressing Violence and Social Exclusion in Times of Crisis” makes up the third and final plenary session of day one and will canvass more socio-economic issues like the regulations required in safeguarding the rights of vulnerable groups such as women and children in times of crisis. This session will be presented by renowned professionals including Dr. Ramani Jayasundera, AAL, Mr. Harshana Nanayakkara, AAL, Mr. Prashanthalal de Alwis, PC, and the Honourable Murdhu Fernando.  

The first plenary session will take up the pressing issue of Taxation in the Context of Recent Reforms

The second day of the conference will see two plenary sessions followed by two parallel sessions. The first plenary session will take up the pressing issue of Taxation in the Context of Recent Reforms;, covering areas such as the implementation of the new tax regime and the impact of the recent amendments and proposed further reforms on the economy.  
Specialists in these areas such as Mr. Suresh Perera, Principal, Tax and Regulatory, KPMG Sri Lanka, Mr. Ranjith Hapuarachchi, Commissioner General of Inland Revenue, Ms. Thanuja Perera – Tax Policy Advisor – Ministry of Finance, and Mr. Duminda Hulangamuwa, Senior Partner and Head of Tax, E &Y will effectively expound on these topics.  

The second plenary session of day two, titled New Developments in Civil Law and the Notarial Practice will provide insight into recent amendments to several Acts related to notarial practice, civil procedure on the much needed ‘Recovery of possession of Premises Given on Lease Act No. 1 of 2023’ being brought in, and also the ‘Small Claims Court Procedure Act No. 33 of 2022. The experts in the likes of Mr. G. G. Arulpragasam, Ms. Melody Wickramanayake, Attorney -at-Law, Vice President – Legal, NDB PLC, Mr. Jagath Wickramanayake, PC, and Hon. Ruwan Fernando, Judge of the Court of Appeal will speak.  

The first of the two parallel sessions will cover (A) “Recent Developments and Amendments in Employment Law and Challenges in the face of crisis times”, and (B) “Criminal Law in the context of IT Related offences and its forensic investigation”. The former will be presented by well known authorities in the field, namely Jivan Goonetilleke, Attorney-at-Law, Mr. Dittha de Alwis, Senior Assistant Director General, Employers’ Federation of Ceylon, Dr. Pradeep Uluwaduge, Group Chief HR Officer, LOLC Holdings PLC, and Hon. Sudantha Ranasinghe, President, Labour Tribunal, and will cover among other things recent amendments to Labour Laws and challenges and remote/hybrid working environment and implementation from the point of view of corporate structures. The latter will be detailed by Mr. Nalinda Indatissa, PC, Mr. Janaka Bandara, Deputy Solicitor General, Senior DIG Dr. Ajith Rohana, and Dr. Thusitha Abeysekara, Senior Lecturer in Law, all of whom are experienced professionals in their respective fields. This session will cover subjects such as IT related offences, defenses, reforms, and challenges, as well as the investigation and prosecution of IT related offenses.  

The second parallel session takes on the areas of (A) “The Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA), the progress of digitalization in Sri Lanka and Artificial Intelligence (AI): Is Sri Lanka ready to implement AI in delivering services in the Public Sector?” and (B) “Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) in the Context of the Present Economic Situation”. The former will delve into the implementation of the PDPA Act and related challenges as well as the recent Cyber Security Bill while also discussing the question of whether the lack of digitalization in Sri Lanka is an impediment to an efficient economic environment and will be presented by Mr. Jayantha Fernando, Chief Legal Officer, ICTA, Dr. Ruvan Weerasinghe, School of Computing, University of Colombo, and Dr. Romesh Ranawana, Group Chief Analytics and AI Officer · Chairman, Artificial Intelligence (AI) Centre of Excellence (AICx). The latter topic will be expatiated by Justice Yasantha Kodagoda, PC, Judge of the Supreme Court, Justice Arjuna Obeyesekara, Judge of the Supreme Court, Mr. Chanaka de Silva PC, Partner, Nithya Partners, and Ms. Dilani Alagaratnam AAL, Director of the CCC-ICLP International ADR Centre. This will feature discussions on mechanisms for making ADR more accessible to the public during tough economic times, ADR as a primary mode of dispute resolution in contract-based employment, and exploring the potential benefits of promoting ADR for economic growth.  
This annual conference is an important platform for legal professionals, policymakers, and academics to share their insights on the law’s role in navigating through crises, working within the existing legal and social framework, and identifying the necessary improvements to be made for the advancement of society as a whole.  

Registrations for the Conference are now open, and interested parties are encouraged to sign up to attend