Bowattegedara Don Francis Lional Wijerathna vs Kingsley Samarakoon – CA 1196/99 F -2020

In the case between Bowattegedara Don Francis Lional Wijerathna (Appellant) and Kingsley Samarakoon (now deceased), Hyacinth Wijerathna, and Soma Wagodapola (Respondents), the court addressed whether the plaintiff was entitled to a declaration as co-owner of the disputed land, ejectment of the defendants, damages, and costs, and whether an earlier dismissal of the appeal for non-appearance should be set aside and the appeal relisted. The findings established that the dismissal of the appeal resulted from inadvertence or oversight due to unavoidable absence and not from any deliberate act, affirming that procedural rules under section 769(2) of the Civil Procedure Code require courts to consider merits even when a party is absent. This decision emphasized that dismissal for non-appearance m