Justice V. Gopala Gowda is a retired Judge of the Supreme Court of India with a distinguished career across multiple levels of the judiciary. Beginning his practice in 1975 in Bangalore, he built expertise in constitutional, civil, criminal, service, and labour matters, and represented trade unions, associations, and individuals before courts and tribunals. He also served as Standing Counsel for key state institutions, while contributing to legal education as a part-time professor in Bangalore law colleges.

He was appointed as a Judge of the Karnataka High Court in 1997, later served as Chief Justice of the Orissa High Court in 2010, and was appointed to the Supreme Court of India in 2012, where he served until his retirement in 2016. He also held leadership roles in advancing access to justice as Executive Chairman of the Karnataka State Legal Services Authority and as a Member of the National Legal Services Authority. Academically, he holds a B.Sc. from Mysore University and an LL.B. from SJR Law College, Bangalore.