Somawathie vs. Siripala and Others – sllr 2019 volume 3 page 252

In Somawathie and others v. Siripala and others, the court addressed whether the procedural law established by the Supreme Court in Superintendent, Stafford Estate and two others v. Solaimuthu Rasu could be applied retrospectively to invalidate a Provincial High Court order affecting succession rights over State land. It was held that the Rasu judgment’s procedural ruling is not applicable retrospectively to non-parties when it would adversely impact vested rights under the Land Development Ordinance and the Constitution. The legal reasoning reaffirmed the presumption against retrospective application of judicial decisions in procedural law, citing established case law, and emphasized that the protection of vested rights overrides retrospective effect unless expressly mandated. The decisio