The Law and Society Trust

The Law and Society Trust (LST) is a Sri Lankan not-for-profit organization working at the intersection of law, human rights, public accountability, and social justice. Founded in 1982 by the late Dr Neelan Tiruchelvam under Sri Lanka’s Trusts Ordinance, the organization was established to make law more meaningful and accessible within society, particularly for communities affected by poverty, exclusion, and weaknesses in public institutions. Its work treats law not only as a professional discipline but also as a resource for addressing underdevelopment, protecting rights, and strengthening the rule of law. LST’s principal activities include legal and policy research, human rights documentation, public advocacy, and the production and commissioning of studies and publications. It also organizes workshops, seminars, symposia, and other educational programmes intended to improve public understanding of legal rights and to encourage members of the legal community to use legal mechanisms as instruments of social change. A central element of its mission is the promotion of rights-based approaches to research, documentation, and advocacy, together with the broader realization of justiciable rights and public accountability. The organization was incorporated in 1992 under Sri Lanka’s Companies Act No. 17 of 1982. It later re-registered under the Companies Act No. 7 of 2007, with registration number GA 648. Its institutional development therefore spans both a trust-based foundation and a subsequently formalized corporate registration framework. The available reference material does not identify a parent company, commercial owner, stock-market listing, or corporate group. LST is best understood as an independent civil-society and professional research organization rather than a consumer-facing brand. LST’s work is supported by a specialized legal library in Colombo. The collection contains approximately 9,700 books and includes early Sri Lankan legal literature, contemporary archival material, law reports, legislative enactments, Acts of Sri Lanka, parliamentary debates, legal dictionaries, encyclopedias, and government gazettes. The library also includes the Sam Kadirgamar QC collection, acquired in 1991, with legal texts and law reports from Sri Lanka, India, England, and South Africa. These resources are intended for reference use by law students, researchers, and others interested in legal studies. The Trust’s public-facing identity is therefore defined by knowledge production, rights advocacy, documentation, and institutional access rather than by products sold in a conventional market. Its flagship offerings are research publications, legal information resources, human-rights documentation, educational programmes, and advocacy initiatives. The available sources do not provide a current executive list, detailed programme chronology, financial information, or a clear statement of present operational status; those fields are consequently left unreported.

The Law and Society Trust was founded in Sri Lanka in 1982 by the late Dr Neelan Tiruchelvam under the Trusts Ordinance. Its creation reflected an effort to connect legal scholarship and legal practice with wider social concerns, including poverty, underdevelopment, access to justice, and the protection of rights. Rather than operating as a conventional law firm or commercial publisher, the Trust developed as a not-for-profit institution concerned with research, documentation, public education, and advocacy. From the outset, LST’s stated purpose was to make law play a more meaningful role in society. Its approach has included commissioning and producing studies, organizing public and professional programmes, and using research to support rights-based advocacy. The organization’s programme model has encompassed publications, workshops, seminars, and symposia. These activities have addressed the relationship between law and social change, the accessibility of justice mechanisms, and the responsibilities of legal and public institutions. Its mission emphasizes the full realization of the rule of law, the justiciability of rights, and public accountability. LST was incorporated in 1992 under Sri Lanka’s Companies Act No. 17 of 1982. This formal incorporation followed its establishment as a trust and gave the organization a further legal structure through which it could conduct its institutional activities. Following the enactment of a newer company law, it re-registered as required under the Companies Act No. 7 of 2007, under registration number GA 648. The available material does not provide a detailed account of changes in governance, staffing, funding, or programme priorities across these periods. A significant institutional resource is the Trust’s legal library in Colombo. The library holds approximately 9,700 books, including historical Sri Lankan legal materials and contemporary archival resources. Its holdings include the New Law Reports, Sri Lanka Law Reports, legislative enactments, Acts of Sri Lanka, parliamentary debates, legal dictionaries, encyclopedias, and government gazettes. In 1991, LST acquired the Sam Kadirgamar QC collection, which contains substantial legal texts and law reports from Sri Lanka, India, England, and South Africa. The collection is maintained as a reference resource for law students, researchers, and members of the public interested in legal matters. Over time, the Trust’s identity has remained centered on the use of law as a tool for social change. Its activities combine research and publication with documentation, advocacy, professional education, and efforts to improve public access to justice. The available reference material identifies Colombo as its headquarters but does not provide sufficient information to describe current programmes, leadership, finances, international partnerships, or present operational status. Accordingly, no unsupported claims are made about current activity levels or organizational continuity.

• 2007

  Re-registration under new company legislation

  [1]The Law and Society Trusten.wikipedia.org

  LST subsequently re-registered as required under the Companies Act No. 7 of 2007, with registration number GA 648.

• 1992

  Incorporation under the Companies Act

  [1]The Law and Society Trusten.wikipedia.org

  The organization was incorporated under Sri Lanka’s Companies Act No. 17 of 1982.

• 1991

  Acquisition of the Sam Kadirgamar QC collection

  [1]The Law and Society Trusten.wikipedia.org

  LST acquired the Sam Kadirgamar QC legal collection, adding Sri Lankan, Indian, English, and South African legal texts and law reports to its reference resources.

• 1982

  Establishment of the Trust

  [1]The Law and Society Trusten.wikipedia.org

  The Law and Society Trust was founded in Sri Lanka by Dr Neelan Tiruchelvam under the Trusts Ordinance.

Independent Sri Lankan civil-society organization using legal research, documentation, advocacy, and education to advance human rights, access to justice, the rule of law, and public accountability.

• Research

  Legal research and policy studies

  LST conducts and commissions research intended to clarify legal and policy issues and to examine how law operates within Sri Lankan society. The work is connected to the organization’s broader concern with rights, accountability, underdevelopment, poverty, and access to justice.

• Documentation

  Human rights documentation

  Human rights documentation is one of the Trust’s stated areas of activity. It forms part of a rights-based approach that uses recorded information and legal analysis to support public understanding, advocacy, and accountability.

• Publications

  Legal publications

  The Trust produces and commissions publications and studies designed to make legal knowledge more useful to society. These materials support research, professional discussion, public education, and advocacy concerning rights and the rule of law.

• Advocacy and education

  Access-to-justice programmes

  LST organizes programmes intended to improve access to mechanisms of justice. The available material describes these activities broadly and does not identify specific current projects, target groups, or measurable outcomes.

• Information services

  Legal reference library

  The Colombo library contains approximately 9,700 books and archival legal resources, including Sri Lankan law reports, legislation, parliamentary debates, legal reference works, and government gazettes. It also houses the Sam Kadirgamar QC collection and is available as a reference resource for students, researchers, and other interested users.

1. 1The Law and Society Trusten.wikipedia.org
2. 2The Law and Society Trust official websitelstlanka.org