It is an object of the present invention to inhibit exposure of Ag in Ag-employing reflective electrodes caused by microdefects generated during the manufacturing process, and to prevent reduction in light emission output and deterioration in current-voltage characteristics resulting from shorting of the light emitting device.The semiconductor light emitting device comprises an n-type semiconductor layer, a light emitting layer and a p-type semiconductor layer in that order on a substrate, with a negative electrode and positive electrode each formed in contact with the n-type semiconductor layer and p-type semiconductor layer, respectively. The positive electrode comprises at least a contact metal layer composed of at least one type of metal selected from the group consisting of Pt, Ir, Rh, Pd, Ru and Re or their alloy in contact with the p-type semiconductor layer, a reflective layer composed of a metal or alloy containing Ag as the main component on the contact layer, and one or more protective metal layers containing no Ag, covering the top and side surfaces of the reflective layer.