Dato Steven Chong named chief justice of Supreme Court The High Court judge replaces outgoing chief justice Dato Hj Kifrawi

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN – High Court judge Dato Paduka Steven Chong has been appointed the new chief justice of the Supreme Court, according to a statement broadcast on Radio Televisyen Brunei on Friday.

The state broadcaster said His Majesty the Sultan gave consent to the appointment, which takes effect from June 30, 2018.

Dato Chong replaces the long-serving Dato Seri Paduka Hj Kifrawi Dato Paduka Hj Kifli, who completes his term after almost nine years in the country’s top judicial post.

A prominent figure in Brunei’s legal community, Chong began his career as a magistrate in the Subordinate Court back in 1984, rising the ranks to eventually take a seat on the High Court bench in 2001.

He received his initial education at St George’s School Brunei, later obtaining a Bachelor of Arts degree at the Dorset Institute of Higher Education. A year later, he qualified as a barrister of Lincoln’s Inn, through the Inns of Court School of Law.