Justice Uday Umesh Lalit was appointed as the 49th Chief Justice of India on Wednesday after President Droupadi Murmu signed his warrant of appointment.
He will assume charge on August 27 after incumbent N V Ramana demits office the day before.
"In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (2) of Article 124 of the Constitution of India, the President is pleased to appoint Shri Justice Uday Umesh Lalit, judge of the Supreme Court, to be the Chief Justice of India with effect from 27 August 2022," a law ministry notification said.
Justice Uday Umesh Lalit was appointed as a Supreme Court of India Judge from the Bar in August 2014. He will be the second Chief Justice of India to be directly raised from the Bar to the Supreme Court, joining Justice S.M. Sikri, who became the 13th CJI in 1971.
He has served as a member of the Supreme Court Legal Services Committee for two terms.
Justice Lalit was born on November 9, 1957, in Solapur, Maharashtra, and was admitted to the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa in June 1983.
He practised in the Bombay High Court till December 1985, before shifting his practice to Delhi in January 1986.
From October 1986 to 1992, he worked in the chambers of Shri Soli J. Sorabjee and was on the roster of attorneys for the Union of India during the time Shri Soli J. Sorabjee was Attorney General for India.
He worked as an Advocate on Record from 1992 to 2002 before being appointed Senior Advocate by the Supreme Court in April 2004. He was also named Amicus Curiae in a number of major cases, including forest concerns, vehicular pollution, and Yamuna pollution, among others.
Under Supreme Court directives, he was assigned as Special Public Prosecutor for the CBI to conduct trials in all 2G issues.
Justice Lalit will serve for less than three months. He will turn 65 on November 8 when he demits office.
(With inputs from agency)
