Padmini Karunanayake vs. The Finance Company PLC et al. – CA WRIT/392/18-2022

In the case between Padmini Karunanayake (Petitioner) and The Finance Company PLC, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, and the Monetary Board of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (Respondents), the court addressed the issue of whether the Court of Appeal had jurisdiction to entertain an application for a writ of Certiorari under section 58 of the Finance Business Act. It was held that the actions being challenged, particularly the directive to withhold certain payments, fell within the exclusive jurisdiction of the Supreme Court as outlined in section 58(2) of the Finance Business Act. The key principle reaffirmed was that where statutory ouster clauses assign exclusive jurisdiction to another forum, the Court of Appeal’s writ jurisdiction is excluded. The decision was based on an analysis of the F