T Raja (R), the Acting Chief Justice of the Madras High Court administered the oath of office to V Lakshminarayanan at a ceremony held on Monday. (Photo | Express)
CHENNAI: Senior advocate V Lakshminarayanan has been sworn in as an additional judge of the Madras High Court. Acting Chief Justice T Raja administered him the oath of office at a ceremony held in the High Court premises attended among others by judges and prominent persons from the bar.
The Centre notified his appointment as the additional judge on February 23. With his appointment, the strength of the Madras High Court has increased to 58 out of a sanctioned strength of 75.
Justice Lakshminarayanan, in his acceptance speech, said the elevation is the time to put the nation beyond the self. Recalling what he had written when retired Justice Kannan was elevated to the Bench, he said he has changed his view slightly.
"Adorning the bench is a natural progression of a lawyer but today I hold a different view. The transition of a lawyer from the bar to the bench is not an achievement of the self but it is beyond that," he said.
He added, it is the transition from 'self-centred' to 'selfless' and it is "time to put the nation beyond the self."
Advocate General (AG) R Shunmugasundaram, while welcoming the newly sworn-in judge, said the institution and the lawyers will benefit from Lakshminarayanan's "vast knowledge, sharp intellect and practical experience."
Born in 1970 in a family of lawyers, Lakshminarayanan graduated from the National Law School of India University (NLSIU) Bengaluru, after completing his undergraduate degree at the DG Vaishnav College in Chennai.
He began his legal career in 1995 and had wide practice in several areas including constitutional law, civil, criminal and intellectual property matters before various courts including the High Court and the Supreme Court. He has also written a large number of articles relating to judgments and legal matters in several magazines and newspapers.
