Lawyers
Nelun Senanayake (Senior Associate)
Nelun Senanayake is the senior associate and the founder of Nelun Senanayake Associates.
She holds a Bachelor of Science – B. Sc (Honours) degree from the University of Colombo Sri Lanka, Master of Business Administration – MBA, degree from the University of Colombo Sri Lanka and ACMA.
She was called to the Bar of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka in 1992 and is a member of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka. Further, she is a Notary Public, Commissioner for Oaths and a Company Secretary.
Senanayake has over thirty years of practice as an Attorney-at-Law in the Private Bar.
Senanayake worked as a professional assistant at M/s Julius & Creasy for sixteen years. At Julius and Creasy she was working in the Admiralty Department as the Senior Assistant handling all the admiralty and shipping related matters. Furthermore, she handled court work as an instructing attorney and appeared in District Court, Commercial High Court, High Court, Admiralty Court, Civil Appellate Court, Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court. She also handled several arbitrations with Sri Lankan arbitrators as well as with foreign arbitrators.
Thereafter, Mrs. Senanayake worked as the Head of Legal at one of the world-renowned Group of companies manufacturing value added Sri Lankan Tea. In there she handled all the international agreements, contracts and total portfolio of the trademarks in the organization along with all the other legal work in the group of companies.
Apart from her legal work, she worked as a visiting lecturer at the CINEC Maritime Campus on Shipping and Maritime Law.
Samurdhi Jayamaha
Samurdhi Uthpala Jayamaha is a Junior Lawyer at Nelun Senanayake Associates who joined the firm in 2017. Currently she handles the work pertaining to civil litigation, conveyancing and company secretarial work of the firm.
Samurdhi holds a Bachelor of Laws – LLB (Honours) degree with a 2nd Class- Upper Division (English Medium) from Faculty of Law, University of Colombo, Sri Lanka. (August 2011- August 2015)
She was called to the Bar of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka in 2017 and is a member of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka. Further, she is a Notary Public, Commissioner for Oaths and a Company Secretary.
She also holds a Master of Laws – LLM degree with a Merit pass (English Medium) from University of West London (September 2018- August 2019).
At present she is reading for her PhD from South-West University of Political Science and Law, Chongqing, China (June 2020- Dec 2023)
Apart from her legal studies she has published several research papers over the years. She also works as a part-time lecturer at Asia Pacific Institute of Information Technology (APIIT) Law School and as a visiting lecturer of Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology (SLIIT) School of Law.
Lakna De Zoysa
Lakna De Zoysa is a Junior Lawyer at Nelun Senanayake Associates who joined the firm in 2019. Currently she handles the work pertaining to civil litigation, conveyancing and company secretarial work of the firm.
Lakna graduated with a Bachelor of Laws degree (English Medium) from the General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University in the year 2016.
She was called to the Bar of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka in 2019 and is a member of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka. Further, she is a Notary Public, Commissioner for Oaths and a Company Secretary.
Apart from her legal studies, she holds diplomas in the field of Human Resource Management (English Medium) from the Charted Institute of Personnel Management.
Further, currently she is reading for an Advance Diploma in Forensic Medicine and Sciences (English Medium) in Department of Forensic Medicine & Toxicology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Colombo.
Jesseca Sanjini Akalanki Wijemanne
Jesseca Sanjini Akalanki Wijemanne is a Junior Lawyer at Nelun Senanayake Associates. She was working in the Associates as a legal intern since the year 2018 and did her apprenticing year in the Associate in year 2021.
She was called to the Bar of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka in 2021 and is a member of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka. Further, she is a Notary Public, Commissioner for Oaths and a Company Secretary.
Currently she handles the work pertaining to conveyancing, civil litigation and company secretarial work of the firm.
Akalanki graduated with a Bachelor of Laws degree (English Medium) from the General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University in the year 2019.
Apart from her legal studies, she is a Merit holder of the Professional Qualification in Human Resource Management (English Medium) at the Charted Institute of Personnel Management.
Meshika Ekanayake
Meshika Ekanayake is a junior lawyer at Nelun Senanayake Associates who joined the firm in year 2022. Currently she mainly handles the work pertaining to civil litigation of the firm.
Meshika holds a Bachelor of Laws – LLB (Honors) Degree (English Medium) from Asia Pacific Institute of Information Technology (APIIT) Law School (February 2016- July 20218)
She was called to the Bar of Supreme Court of Sri Lanka in 2022 and is a member of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka.
Apart from her studies, she had also worked at Commercial Bank PLC as an intern (2014-2015).
Athaliah Ruwinka Fernandopulle
Athaliah Ruwinka Fernandopulle is a Junior Lawyer at Nelun Senanayake Associates who joined the firm in 2021 as a legal intern and then continued her apprenticing year in the Associates in year 2022.
She was called to the Bar of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka in 2022 and is a member of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka.
Currently she handles the work pertaining to civil litigation, conveyancing and company secretarial work of the firm.
Ruwinka holds a Bachelor of Laws – LLB (Honours) degree (English Medium) from Faculty of Law, General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University. (January 2016- December 2019) and completed her studies at the Sri Lanka Law College in 2021.
Apart from her legal studies, she is currently completing her education in CIMA
Legal Apprentices & Legal Interns
Chamadi Muthumala
Chamadi Harshala Muthumala is working as a legal intern at Nelun Senanayake Associates since the year 2018. Currently she is engaged in completing her Bar Examinations at Sri Lanka Law College.
She assists with the company secretarial and conveyancing related work under the supervision of Mrs. Nelun Senanayake (AAL).
Chamadi holds a Bachelor of Laws – LLB degree with a 2nd Class- Upper Division (English Medium) from at Asia Pacific Institute of Information Technology (APIIT) Law School (February 2016- July 2018).
Apart from her legal studies, she holds diplomas in the field of Human Resource Management from the Charted Institute of Personnel Management.
Consultant
Shyamali Ranaraja
Mrs. Shyamali Ranaraja is an Attorney-at-law and holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Colombo. She has specialized in the practice of Employment and Labour Law for over 29 years, having started her career at the Employers’ Federation of Ceylon. She is a practicing attorney and also provides advisory services on all aspects of human resources management, industrial relations and statutory provisions relating to employment. Mrs. Ranaraja is currently a visiting lecturer and examiner at the University of Peradeniya; Department of Human Resources Management and Department of Law, and has also been a visiting lecturer for the Master’s Degree in Business Administration at the PGIA, and at other institutions. She is a member of the Board of Directors of several non-profit organizations.
Shyamali also carries out research on various aspects of labour and employment law, rights at work and gender aspects of employment for the International Labour Organization, the World Bank, the International Organization for Migration, and European Union among others, and has had her research published both nationally and internationally.