Prof. Peiris to establish legal research trust for Colombo University and Law College

Colombo, July 23 (Daily Mirror) - Professor G.L. Peiris has announced plans to establish a Trust Fund to support legal research and academic initiatives at the Faculty of Law, University of Colombo, and the Sri Lanka Law College.

Making the announcement at the launch of the Sinhala legal journal “Nitiya” at the Sri Lanka Law College recently, Prof. Peiris said the fund would be created using the royalties he receives as the author of more than ten books on Sri Lankan laws and legal systems.

He said the proposed Trustees of the fund would include the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Colombo, the Principal of the Sri Lanka Law College, and the Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Colombo.

The launch event was attended by Attorney General Parinda Ranasinghe, PC, President of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka Rajeev Amarasuriya, and Principal of the Sri Lanka Law College Prasantha Lal de Alwis, PC.

Speaking at the event, Prof. Peiris praised the initiatives taken by Mr. de Alwis to expand the activities of the Law College beyond traditional classroom teaching by introducing various literary, cultural and academic programmes.

He said these efforts had brought renewed energy to an institution with a long and respected history.

Prof. Peiris also highlighted the importance of Nitiya, a Sinhala legal journal first published in 1958, which was revived in 2024 after a period of interruption.

He said the journal provides a platform for analytical writing on legal issues, including emerging fields such as Artificial Intelligence, while encouraging informed criticism of judicial decisions and contributions to the legislative process.

He highlighted that institutions such as the Sri Lanka Law College should play a key role in promoting legal research and academic discussions on evolving areas of law.