A ceremonial sitting was held this morning at the Waigani Supreme and National Court in honour of the late Justice Salatiel Lenalia.
Late Justice Lenalia spent 41 years serving in the judiciary, making him the longest serving member of the judiciary.
Chief Justice Sir Salamo Injia said 18 of those years was as a magistrate and 19 as a judge.
The late judge also served in Vanuatu as a magistrate and at one point, as the acting Chief Justice of Vanuatu in August of 1995. This was while he was still a magistrate.
Sir Salamo described the late judge as a very humble man whose professionalism reflected in his judgements.
He chaired a number of big leadership tribunal cases and Supreme Court bench during his time.
He was ranked number 7 in the order of seniority amongst the judges at the time of his death.
He was born on 2 March 1948; he passed on at 69.
His untimely departure on the morning of August 15 leaves a big vacuum for the judiciary, which Sir Salamo said will be hard to fill.
"His passing was completely unexpected and untimely to the judiciary," Sir Salamo said.
On behalf of the judiciary, he thanked the people of New Ireland, particularity of Lelek village in the Namatanai area, for sharing him with the rest of the country.
The ceremonial sitting was attended by judges, magistrates, lawyers, Attorney-General Steven Davis and others from the legal fraternity.