AW Chambers · Est. 1987
A Legal Lineage
Traced to 1826
Historical records of the Galle Bar trace the Weerasooriya family's association with the legal profession to 1826. Across recorded practitioners, members of the family served as Notaries Public, Proctors, Crown Proctors, and Attorneys-at-Law in southern Sri Lanka. AW Chambers continues this legal tradition through its present practice in Colombo.
1826
First Recorded Legal Appointment
8
Recorded Legal Practitioners
1987
AW Chambers Established
Galle Fort, Southern Province · seat of the family practice
01 / 08
“So the oldest recorded legal family at the Galle Bar (Sri Lanka) are still practising.”
Norah Roberts, Galle as Quiet as Asleep (1993)
In a published account of the Galle Bar written in the early 1990s, historian Norah Roberts described the Weerasooriya family as “the oldest family of lawyers at the Sri Lankan Bar still practising.”
The family's recorded association with the legal profession begins in 1826, when Don Harmanis Weerasooriya became a Notary Public in Galle during the British colonial period. Across the recorded practitioners that followed, members of the family served as Proctors, Crown Proctors, Attorneys-at-Law, and office-bearers of the Bar in southern Sri Lanka.
Today, that tradition continues through AW Chambers.
Recorded Legal Practitioners
Galle, Southern Province · 1826 to present
I · 1826
Don Harmanis Weerasooriya
Notary Public
“The first in the family with any legal connection.” The earliest recorded legal practitioner in the family.
II · 1868
Alexander Theodore Weerasooriya
First Proctor · Enrolled 1868 · Member, Galle Municipal Council
Don's nephew. The first Proctor in the family, enrolled at the Sri Lankan Bar in 1868, forty-two years after his uncle. Also served as a member of the Galle Municipal Council.
III · 1876
Theodoris Weerasooriya
Proctor · Enrolled 1876
Don's son. Became a Proctor in 1876, eight years after Alexander. Part of the second recorded generation at the Bar.
IV · 1890
Robert Richard Weerasooriya
Proctor
A practitioner at a time when only a handful of lawyers served the entire Galle district.
V · 1896
William Weerasooriya
Proctor
VI · 1903
Sam S. Weerasooriya
Proctor · 1875 to 1961, enrolled 1903
A veteran of the Sri Lankan Bar. Practised through the late colonial and post-independence periods.
Sam S. Weerasooriya, Proctor, c. early 1900s Sam S. Weerasooriya at his desk VII · Enrolled 18 Nov 1949 · Crown Proctor 1969
Hubert E. Weerasooriya
Crown Proctor · President, Law Association of Galle · Vice President, Bar Association of Sri Lanka (1981)
A distinguished practitioner known for his courtesy and integrity. Author of two books: a novel advocating non-violent resolution of Sri Lanka's ethnic conflict, and a historical guide to the ruins of Anuradhapura. His daughter Manel followed him to the Bar.
Hubert E. Weerasooriya in court robes, c. mid-twentieth century Hubert E. Weerasooriya, Proctor S.C. & Notary Public, formal portrait VIII · 1982
Manel Weerasooriya
Attorney-at-Law
Took her oaths in 1982 and practised alongside her father at Galle. Passed away in 2012.
Manel Weerasooriya, Attorney-at-Law IX · 1987
Asoka Weerasooriya
Founder & Senior Counsel
Took oaths in 1987. Former State Counsel and later appointed Senior Counsel. Has appeared across the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, High Courts, and trial courts of Sri Lanka over several decades of practice.
X · 2023
Akarsha Weerasooriya
Attorney-at-Law
Took oaths in 2023. The most recent member of the family to join the Sri Lankan Bar, carrying forward a connection that now spans nearly two centuries.
From the Archive
Photographs of the line
As Documented
The Weerasooriya family's legal history is recorded in Galle as Quiet as Asleep (1993) by Norah Roberts, Librarian of the Galle Public Library, a published account of Galle's history, its people, and its institutions. The book records that H. E. Weerasooriya, then Crown Proctor, stated that the Weerasooriya family had given more members to the Sri Lankan Bar than any other family in the south.
Galle as Quiet as Asleep
- Author
- Norah Roberts
- Year
- 1993
- ISBN
- 9558095850
- Origin
- Published in Sri Lanka
- Source
- Galle Public Library
AW Chambers does not claim institutional continuity with earlier family practitioners. The heritage documented here reflects the family's legal lineage, distinct from the founding of AW Chambers in 1987.
Still Practising.
Two centuries on, the line continues. Asoka Weerasooriya took oaths in 1987 and founded AW Chambers in Colombo that same year. His son Akarsha was admitted in 2023. The work goes on.