Kekul Kotuwage Don Aruna Chaminda vs. Janashakthi General Insurance Limited – SC APPEAL NO: 134/2018-2019

The case between Kekul Kotuwage Don Aruna Chaminda and Janashakthi General Insurance Limited addressed whether the Commercial High Court retained jurisdiction to adjudicate an insurance indemnity claim following the defendant’s subsequent challenge to jurisdiction based on an alleged arbitration clause. It was determined that an unqualified and repeated admission to jurisdiction, made by the defendant in court pleadings and conduct, constitutes a waiver and precludes later withdrawal absent exceptional circumstances. This principle reaffirmed that parties, once having accepted the jurisdiction of the court, are estopped from subsequently contesting it unless a patent lack of jurisdiction or clear mistake is demonstrated. The decision relied on established jurisprudence concerning admission