Rocco Galati
| Rocco Galati | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1959 Calabria, Italy |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Occupation | Lawyer |
Rocco Galati (born 1959) is an Italian-born Canadian lawyer who specializes in cases involving constitutional law and also suspects of terrorism.
Galati was born in Calabria, Italy and his family immigrated to Canada in 1965. He graduated from McGill University in 1984 with a Bachelor of Arts and then graduated from Osgoode Hall Law School in 1987.
After his Call to the bar he worked at the federal Department of Justice.
In 2001, Galati defended Delmart Vreeland at trial.
Galati was Abdurahman Khadr's first lawyer. In late 2003, Galati resigned from all national security cases after being the target of death threats. Galati said a threat left on his answering machine stated: "Well, Mr. Galati. What's this I hear about you working with the terrorist now, helping to get that (expletive) punk terrorist Khadr off. You a dead wop." Galati requested 24-hour surveillance of his house; when the RCMP refused to provide this, he declared that "we now live in Colombia because the rule of law is meaningless" and later indicated he believed the call came from American intelligence. Mr Galati went on to claim: '"The voice is similar and likely the same as a voice of someone who threatened one of our former clients," he said, adding later that "in that case, our client disappeared."' Galati later characterized the threats as "institutional" and "governmental" but did not elaborate.
In 2006, Galati represented Ahmad Mustafa Ghany, a suspect in the 2006 Ontario terrorism plot. In 2008, charges were stayed against Ghany and three other defendants.
On October 7, 2013, Galati brought a court application that challenged the appointment of Justice Marc Nadon to the Supreme Court of Canada on the basis of Nadon being ineligible as under the Quebec provisions of the Supreme Court Act. The Act requires that three members of the Supreme Court be from Quebec. The Quebec government announced that it would also challenge Nadon's appointment.
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