Justice Uday Umesh Lalit takes oath as the 49th Chief Justice of India

Justice Uday Umesh Lalit takes oath as the 49th Chief Justice of India

Justice Uday Umesh Lalit has today taken oath as the 49th Chief Justice of India. President Droupadi Murmu administered the oath of office to Justice Lalit at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

It is noteworthy that Justice UU Lalit was directly elevated to the Supreme Court Bench from the Bar after Justice SM Sikri. Prior to his elevation as a judge, he practised as a senior counsel at the Supreme Court.

Justice Lalit was part of the majority opinion of the Constitution Bench judgment which declared Triple Talaq as unconstitutional. He also led the bench which ordered the handing over of the administration of the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple from the Travancore Royal Family to a Court-appointed administrative committee.

Justice Lalit enrolled as an Advocate in June, 1983 and practised in the High Court of Bombay till December, 1985. He shifted his practice to Delhi in January, 1986 and was designated as Senior Advocate by the Supreme Court in April, 2004. He has appeared as Amicus Curiae in many matters. He was appointed as the Special Public Prosecutor for CBI to conduct trial in all 2G matters under the orders of the Supreme Court. Justice UU Lalit is a member of Supreme Court of India Legal Services Committee for two terms. He was appointed as the Judge of the Supreme Court of India on August 13, 2014.

As the executive chairman of NALSA since May 2021, Justice Lalit has initiated several programs to give impetus for alternate dispute resolution through Lok Adalats and legal aid programs across the country.

Justice Uday Umesh Lalit will have a short term of less than 3 months as the Chief Justice of India as he will be retiring on November 8, 2022.