JoanneMoffit at 18:58, 24 April 2026

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{{Short description|Judge of the Supreme Court of India}}
{{Use Indian English|date=April 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Kalpathy Venkataraman Viswanathan
| image = Justice K. V. Viswanathan.jpg
| office = Judge of the [[Supreme Court of India]]
| appointer = [[Droupadi Murmu]]
| nominator = [[Dhananjaya Y. Chandrachud]]
| term_start = 19 May 2023
| term_end =
| office1 = [[Additional Solicitor General of India]]
| term_start1 = 26 August 2013
| term_end1 = May 2014
| appointer1 = [[Pranab Mukherjee]]
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1966|5|26|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Kalpathy]], [[Kerala]], India
| parents = K.V. Venkataraman<br />Lalitha Venkataraman
| spouse = Jaishree Viswanathan
| children = 2 daughters
}}

'''Kalpathy Venkataraman Viswanathan''' (born 26 May 1966)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Chief Justice & Judges {{!}} SUPREME COURT OF INDIA |url=https://api.sci.gov.in/chief-justice-judges |access-date=2023-07-22 |website=main.sci.gov.in}}</ref> is a judge of the [[Supreme Court of India]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=19 May 2023 |title=Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra & KV Viswanathan Take Oath As Supreme Court Judges |url=https://www.livelaw.in/top-stories/supreme-court-justice-prashant-kumar-mishra-kv-viswanathan-take-oath-as-supreme-court-judges-229049 |access-date= |website=www.livelaw.in |language=en}}</ref><ref name="The Times of India 2023">{{cite web | title=Supreme Court Judges: CJI administers oath of office to Justice Mishra, senior advocate Viswanathan - India News | website=The Times of India | date=19 May 2023 | url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/two-new-judges-for-sc-cji-administers-oath-of-office-to-justice-mishra-senior-advocate-viswanathan/articleshow/100344696.cms | access-date=19 May 2023}}</ref>

==Career==

Viswanathan graduated from Coimbatore Law College and enrolled in the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu in 1988.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Jain |first=Aditya |date=17 May 2023 |title=Viswanathan upright senior member of bar: Collegium |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/viswanathan-upright-senior-member-of-bar-collegium-8613351/ |access-date= |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref>

=== Junior advocate ===
Viswanathan worked as a junior, under Senior Advocates C.S. Vaidyanathan and [[K. K. Venugopal]] from 1988 to 1995 during early years of his practice.<ref>{{Cite web |title=K.V. Viswanathan |url=https://www.scobserver.in/judges/k-v-viswanathan/ |access-date=2023-05-20 |website=Supreme Court Observer |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Senior advocate ===
He was designated as the senior advocate by the Supreme Court on 28 April 2009. He was appointed as the Additional Solicitor General of India on 26 August 2013 and held the position till May 2014.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Sarda |first=Kanu |date=17 May 2023 |title=If Centre accepts his elevation, Senior Advocate KV Viswanathan will be CJI in 2030 |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/law/story/senior-advocate-kv-viswanathan-cji-2030-supreme-court-collegium-2380607-2023-05-17 |access-date= |website=India Today |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |last=Department of Legal Affairs |title=List of Law Officers (As on 26 August 2013) |url=http://lawmin.nic.in/la/lawofficers.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130925174949/http://lawmin.nic.in:80/la/lawofficers.htm |url-status=deviated |archive-date=25 September 2013}}</ref>

As senior advocate, he argued important constitution bench cases. He represented the petitioners in the case of [[Right to Privacy verdict|right to privacy]], validity of Aadhaar Act and [[Supriyo v. Union of India|marriage equality]].<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /> He represented the intervenor, [[Internet Freedom Foundation]] in the WhatsApp-Facebook Privacy case.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Supreme Court Observer |title=Whatsapp-Facebook Privacy |url=https://www.scobserver.in/cases/karmanya-singh-sareen-union-of-india-whatsapp-facebook-privacy-case-background/ |access-date= |website=Supreme Court Observer |language=en-US}}</ref> He contributed to the court as [[amicus curiae]] in various cases, including the case concerning the validity of tenure extension for [[Central Bureau of Investigation]] and [[Enforcement Directorate]] (ED) directors and judicial appointments in lower courts.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Kashyap |first=Gauri |date=16 May 2023 |title=Collegium Recommends 2 New Judges to the SC |url=https://www.scobserver.in/journal/collegium-recommends-2-new-judges-to-the-sc/ |access-date= |website=Supreme Court Observer |language=en-US}}</ref> In the case challenging the validity of tenure extension for ED director, he told the court that the amendment must be scrapped "in the interest of democracy."<ref name=":1" />

When Law Minister [[Kiren Rijiju]] labeled retired judges who criticized state policies as an "anti-Indian gang," it sparked significant concern. As a senior advocate, Viswanathan emphasized the gravity of the situation, stating that the use of such strong language by India's law minister to describe retired judges was troubling.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Das |first=Awstika |date=19 May 2023 |title=Kiren Rijiju : Law Minister Who Crossed The Line Too Far With Rhetoric Against Judiciary |url=https://www.livelaw.in/articles/kiren-rijiju-controversial-legacy-union-law-minister-229040 |access-date= |website=www.livelaw.in |language=en}}</ref>

=== Supreme Court of India ===
He was appointed as a judge of the [[Supreme Court of India]] on 19 May 2023.<ref name=":0" /> When considering all previous appointments, he was the tenth member of the bar to have been directly appointed to the Supreme Court.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":3" /> He is in line to be the Chief Justice of India from 12 August 2030, to 25 May 2031.<ref name=":0" /> He is on track to become the fourth member directly elevated from the bar to assume the position of Chief Justice of India.<ref name=":2" />

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Sitting Judges of the Supreme Court of India}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Viswanathan, K. V.}}
[[Category:1966 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Justices of the Supreme Court of India]]
[[Category:21st-century Indian judges]]

{{India-law-bio-stub}}

K. V. Viswanathan - Revision history

JoanneMoffit at 18:58, 24 April 2026