Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury appointed as Bangladesh’s 26th Chief Justice

Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court has been appointed as the country’s 26th Chief Justice.

A notification, signed by Law Secretary Liaquet Ali Molla, was issued on Tuesday (23 December) in accordance with the President’s order.

The notification stated that the President, exercising the powers conferred by Article 95(1) of the Constitution, has appointed Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury of the Appellate Division as the Chief Justice of Bangladesh. The appointment will take effect from the date he takes oath.

The country’s 25th Chief Justice, Syed Refaat Ahmed, will retire on 27 December upon completing the constitutional retirement age of 67 years.

Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury was enrolled as an advocate in the District Judges’ Court in 1985 and in the High Court Division of the Supreme Court in 1987.

He was appointed as an additional judge of the High Court Division on 27 August 2003 and became a permanent judge of the same division two years later.

On 12 August 2024, he was elevated to the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court.

After completing his LLB (Hons) and LLM degrees from Dhaka University, Justice Chowdhury obtained another Master’s degree in international law from the United Kingdom.