Justice Musarrat Hilali Retires from Supreme Court, Honoured at Full Court Reference

ISLAMABAD: Supreme Court of Pakistan Justice Musarrat Hilali has retired from office after completing her tenure. A full court reference was held in her honour at the Supreme Court’s principal seat in Islamabad, presided over by the Chief Justice of Pakistan.

Supreme Court judges, law officers and lawyers attended the reference. Nine Supreme Court judges participated from Islamabad, while four judges joined from the Karachi Registry and three from the Lahore Registry through video link.

Addressing the full court reference held in her honour, Justice Musarrat Hilali became emotional while paying tribute to her late parents. She expressed deep gratitude to her parents, saying their upbringing, prayers and guidance played a vital role in bringing her to this position.

While speaking about her father, she became emotional and said that although she had limited time with him, she learned some of the most important lessons of life from him.

Justice Hilali said that her mother passed away around the time she was appointed as a judge, a loss that she still deeply feels because her mother could not see her attain the judicial position.

She thanked the Chief Justice of Pakistan and her fellow judges, saying their friendship, trust and support had encouraged her throughout her career.

Justice Hilali highlighted several milestones in her judicial career. She became the first woman from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to win a Bar election, later becoming the first woman Chief Justice of the Peshawar High Court and the first woman judge from the province to serve on the Supreme Court.

“Judges come and go, but justice must always prevail,” she said, adding that she was retiring with a sense of satisfaction because whatever she had achieved was made possible through her parents’ prayers, hard work and the support of her fellow judges.

During the full court reference, Additional Attorney General Aamir Rehman also read out a special message from Attorney General for Pakistan Mansoor Usman Awan, in which Justice Musarrat Hilali’s judicial services, professional integrity and contribution to the administration of justice were highly appreciated.