Dennis Edney

Dennis Edney (19 December 1946 – 30 December 2023) was a Scottish-Canadian defence lawyer based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Originally from Scotland, he was noted for his involvement in high-profile cases, including Brian Mills, R. v. Trang, as defence attorney for Abdullah and Omar Khadr, who were captured in the war on terror, for Fahim Ahmad, and for representing the entire Khadr family.

Early life and education Dennis Edney was born in Dundee, Scotland on 19 December 1946. He worked as a building contractor after immigrating to Canada. He was one of the defence attorneys supporting the publication ban on information about the trial, while others decried it.

In 2008 he received the Canadian National Pro Bono Award: "The significance of his commitment is based not only on the tremendous energy, time and personal resources spent advocating on Mr. Khadr’s behalf, but also based on the complexity of the litigation, which was argued before Canadian and U.S. courts and military tribunals. His commitment in the face of potential personal repercussions of representing an unpopular case is a testament to the finest traditions of the legal profession. The fruits of [his] labour have not only increased access to justice for one individual but impacted human rights the world over."

Edney in 2008 Edney was named by Alberta Venture magazine as one of 50 Alberta's most influential people for 2008. He received the 2009 Human Rights Medal awarded by the Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia for work that "has helped to promote and further human rights".

In 2011, he was appointed a Bencher of the Law Society of Alberta.

On 19 September 2014, when the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, in Winnipeg, was first opened, Edney participated in a human rights panel about Omar Khadr's case at the nearby Manitoba Children’s Theatre. Edney was also presented with an award for his work from the Winnipeg Peace Alliance.

Dennis Edney and Patricia Edney star in the 2015 Canadian documentary Guantanamo's Child: Omar Khadr, which looks at Edney's advocacy for Omar Khadr and features interviews in Edney's home, where Khadr resided as a guest after being released on bail in 2015.

Edney died of complications from dementia on 30 December 2023, at the age of 77.