ISLAMABAD (AP) Pakistan's chief justice has stepped down after a high-profile career during which he was praised for protecting democracy but also criticized for judicial overreach.
Iftikhar Chaudhry marked the end of his term on Wednesday with a speech at the Supreme Court in the capital, Islamabad.
He was appointed chief justice in 2005 and attracted national prominence two years later, when he was sacked by then-President Pervez Musharraf. He was reinstated in 2009 after a protest movement led by the nation's lawyers.
Chaudhry leveraged his prominent position to pressure the government and military on issues such as corruption and illegal detentions. But critics accused him of wading into political areas outside of the judiciary's domain.
He will be replaced by the next most senior judge on the Supreme Court, Tassaduq Jillani.
