Chief Justice of India speaks at Edinburgh Law School

Edinburgh Law School was pleased to host the Hon’ble Dr. Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, Chief Justice of India, at Old College on the 1st of June 2023.

The Chief Justice of India’s visit included a roundtable discussion with members of the University of Edinburgh and the wider legal profession on the role of the judiciary in contemporary India, as well as a sold-out public lecture on “Global Change and the Legal Profession, Past and Future: Perspectives from India.”

During the roundtable discussion, Dr. Justice Chandrachud spoke about the various rights-based litigation on which the Supreme Court of India has given judgements, which includes upholding the right to privacy and climate change litigation. He also discussed how the judgments from India have been relied upon by other countries and provided time for dialogue and questions with the invited participants.

In the public lecture, the CJI emphasised the importance of access to justice with the view to encourage a process of healthy dialogue and discourse amongst all stakeholders to foster a rights-based society. Dr. Justice Chandrachud’s captivating presentation not only provided invaluable insights into the evolving nature of the legal profession, but also shed light on the significant role that India plays in shaping the global legal landscape.

Joining the Chief Justice as respondents to his remarks were two Edinburgh Law School alumni: The Right Hon Lord Carloway, Lord President of the Court of Session and Lord Justice General of Scotland, and Ms Almira Delibegović-Broome KC, Advocate and Chair of JUSTICE Scotland. Ms Tanvi Dubey, an Advocate of the Supreme Court of India, also delivered an insightful response on the changes brought by the digitisation of the courts from the perspective of a lawyer. 

Edinburgh Law School was incredibly honoured to host the Chief Justice of India and his accompanying delegation, and we hope this marks the beginning of a long and fruitful association between Edinburgh Law School and the legal community in India.

About the Chief Justice of India

Chief Justice of India, Dr. Dhananjay Yeshwant Chandrachud was born on 11 November 1959. His father, Y.V. Chandrachud, was the 16th Chief Justice of India. He compounded his legal education with an LLM from Harvard University in 1983 after obtaining the ‘Inlaks’ scholarship, and received the Joseph H. Beale prize for securing the highest marks in the Conflict of Laws course. He stayed at Harvard until 1986 to complete his Doctorate in Juridical Sciences. On completing his studies, he enrolled as an advocate with the Bar Council of Maharashtra.

While practicing as an Advocate, CJI Chandrachud remained involved in legal academics by taking a position as a Visiting Professor of Comparative Constitutional Law at the University of Bombay between 1988 and 1997. 

In 1988, CJI Chandrachud was designated as a Senior Advocate in June despite being only 38 years old – this designation is rarely given to advocates below the age of 40. Further, he was appointed as an Additional Solicitor General of India, a position he held until his elevation as a Judge of the Bombay HC on 29 March 2000. 

After over a decade at the Bombay HC, then Justice Chandrachud was appointed as the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court on 31 October 31 2013. He was elevated as a Supreme Court Judge on 13 May 2016, and became the 50th Chief Justice of India on 9 November 2022 and will serve until 10 November 2024, which is one of the longest serving tenures).