Suri Ratnapala is an Australian academic. He is Emeritus Professor of Public Law of the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia.

Biography

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Born in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Suri Ratnapala attended the Royal College, Colombo and the University of Colombo, where he gained his first law degree.[1] His father Amaradasa Ratnapala was a medical doctor and politician. His mother, Ancy Samarasinha, was member of a prominent family in the Southern Province of Sri Lanka. Ratnapala is married to Rusri, née Gunasekera. Their son, Dr Adrian Ratnapala, is a scientist working Germany.[2]

Ratnapala served as a Senior State Counsel,[1] and represented the Sri Lankan State in constitutional cases. He migrated to Australia in 1983. In 1988 he was appointed as Lecturer at the T C Beirne School of Law and, in 2001, was appointed to the Chair of Public Law. He retired in 2014 and was appointed Emeritus Professor.[3]

In 1990, his book Welfare State or Constitutional State?[4] was awarded a Sir Antony Fisher International Memorial Prize by a panel chaired by James Buchanan. In 2000, he received a John Templeton Foundation award for inter-disciplinary teaching spanning legal, political, economic and social theory. In 2003 he was awarded a Centenary of Australian Federation Medal for his contribution to Australian society through research in law and economics.[5] He is a Fellow of the International Centre for Economic Research International Centre for Economic Research (ICER) | EDIRC/RePEc and a Visiting Fellow of the Social Philosophy and Policy Centre at the Bowling Green State University in Ohio. He is also a member of the Editorial Advisory Council of the Centre for Independent Studies (CIS). He has been a member of the Mont Pelerin Society since 1998.[citation needed]

Bibliography

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  • Australian Constitutional Law: Foundations and Theory
  • Welfare State or Constitutional State?
  • Illusions of Comparable Worth
  • Jurisprudence
  • Jurisprudence of Liberty

References

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  1. ^ a b "Centenary medal for Prof. Ratnapala".
  2. ^ "Parliament of Sri Lanka - Ratnapala, Amaradasa (Dr.)".
  3. ^ "School of Law". law.uq.edu.au.
  4. ^ "Welfare State or Constitutional State? by Suri Ratnapala" (PDF).
  5. ^ It's an Honour
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