Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury appointed new chief justice

Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury of the Appellate Division has been appointed as the chief justice, succeeding Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed at the apex of the country’s judiciary.

Justice Refaat had assumed the top judicial post during the political upheaval of 2024 following the student-led mass uprising.

Having reached the retirement age of 67, he is set to retire on Dec 27 and is currently in Saudi Arabia performing Umrah. In his absence, Justice Zubayer has been playing the role.

The government has officially issued a gazette on Wednesday appointing the new Chief Justice. He is scheduled to take the oath of office from President Md Sahabuddin at Bangabhaban.

In terms of seniority in the Supreme Court’s Appellate Division, Justice Zubayer was previously ranked third, overtaking Justice Md Ashfaqul Islam to assume the highest office.

Born on May 18, 1961, Zubayer is the son of the late AFM Abdur Rahman Chowdhury, also a former Supreme Court judge.

After completing his LLB and LLM at Dhaka University, Justice Zubayer pursued a Master’s degree in international law in the United Kingdom.

He enrolled as a lawyer in the Judge’s Court in 1985 and in the High Court Division in 1987. On Aug 27, 2003, he was appointed an additional judge of the High Court, becoming a permanent judge two years later. Despite his qualifications, he was not elevated to the Appellate Division during the Awami League government.

Following the July-August movement in 2024 and the subsequent resignation of Chief Justice Obaidul Hassan on Aug 10, Justice Refaat was appointed to the role. Two days later, Justice Zubayer and three others were promoted from the High Court to the Appellate Division, taking their oaths on Aug 13.

Justice Zubayer will serve until May 18, 2028. Other judges in the Appellate Division currently include Justices Ashfaqul, Md Rezaul Haque, SM Emdadul Hoque, AKM Asaduzzaman, and Farah Mahbub.