Kulandra Ratneser
Senior Counsel & Head of Commercial Litigation Department

Kulandra brings to Bermuda approximately 40 years of international legal experience having been admitted to the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka in 1960, the Inner Temple in the U.K. in 1963, the Supreme Court of Victoria in Australia in 1978 and the High Court of Australia in 1978.

He has had an illustrious legal career spanning four decades having worked in many different Commonwealth Countries. During his initial years as a Barrister (1960s-1970s) Kulandra served as Crown Counsel in Sri Lanka and Director of Public Prosecutions in Belize (appointed to the Belize position by the U.K. Ministry of Overseas Development), Legal Assistant to the Director of Public Prosecutions of the United Kingdom in London and Director of Public Prosecutions in Fiji (again appointed by the U.K. Ministry of Overseas Development).

During his mid years as a Barrister (1980s-1990s) in Australia, Kulandra served in various legal positions commencing with the position of Legal Officer to the Crown Law Department in Western Australia to Senior Crown Prosecutor of the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions in Western Australia. During this period, he also served as Principal Legal Officer and later General Counsel of the Western Australia Regional Office of the Australian Securities Commission.

In November 1999, Kulen was appointed Senior Counsel of Milligan-Whyte & Smith in Bermuda and moved to Lynda Milligan-Whyte & Associates in 2002 where he presently serves as Senior Counsel and Head of Commercial Litigation.

On February 28th, 2003, this firm's Senior Counsel and Head of the Commercial Litigation Department accepted a temporary appointment as Director of Public Prosecution in Bermuda when asked by Governor Sir John Vereker to do so.

Mr. Ratneser has broad legal experience within Government having worked throughout the British Commonwealth in various legal positions. He served as DPP in Belize, Fiji and Western Australia and held numerous legal posts in Sri Lanka, Australia and London.

Mr. Ratneser plans to use the temporary post to mentor younger prosecutors and improve the quality of investigation and presentation to the courts.

Contact:   kratneser@milligan.bm