Centre clears appointment of Bombay HC Justice MS Sonak as Chief Justice of Jharkhand High Court

The Central government on Friday cleared the appointment of Justice MS Sonak, presently a judge of the Bombay High Court, as the Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court.

The appointment follows a recommendation made by the Supreme Court Collegium at its meeting held on December 18, 2025.

Justice Sonak will assume office as Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court upon the retirement of the incumbent Chief Justice, Tarlok Singh Chauhan, on January 8, 2026.

Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal announced the development on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) today, stating that the President of India had approved Justice Sonak’s appointment as Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court.

Born on November 28, 1964, Justice Sonak completed his schooling at Don Bosco High School, Panaji, Goa, and obtained a Bachelor of Science degree from Dhempe College of Arts and Science. He later earned his law degree from M.S. College of Law, Panaji, and was enrolled as an advocate in 1988.

He began practice at the Panaji Bench of the Bombay High Court and subsequently served as Additional Standing Counsel for the Central government, Special Counsel for the State government, and counsel for various statutory corporations.

Justice Sonak was elevated as an additional judge of the Bombay High Court on June 21, 2013, and was later confirmed as a permanent judge.

More recently, Justice Sonak became the first person in Goa to formally register a ‘living will’ or advance medical directive. Such a directive enables individuals to express their preference against prolonged life support or artificial life-sustaining treatment in circumstances where they are unable to communicate their wishes.

The registration took place at a public event organised by the Goa branch of the Indian Medical Association for the release of a booklet on Advanced Medical Directives, after Goa became the first State in India to operationalise a statutory framework for such directives.