Gamage Kumarapala et al. vs. M.M. Martin et al. – CA 648/2000 F -2021

In the case between the successors of Gamage Kumarapala and the heirs of M.M. Martin, the court addressed the determination of entitlement to a disputed 1/6th share of the land known as “Welikatiya Kumbura” in Kitulpe, Kuruwita. The central issue concerned whether this share should devolve to the legal heir(s) of the 1st Defendant (through adoption) or to a separate line of relatives of the original owner, Kiriyanchi Kankanama. The holding confirmed that the lawful heir was the adopted son (Lokubaba Singho), thereby establishing that the 1/6th share rightfully descended to the 1st Defendant’s heirs, not the Appellants. The principle reaffirmed is that a prior Supreme Court ruling confirming lawful inheritance by adoption is binding, and estoppel prevents re-litigation of the same right. Re