Sami Farag

Sami Farag Youssef (; September 1, 1935 – February 21, 2015) was an Egyptian lawyer, judge, prosecutor and Vice-President of the Supreme Constitutional Court of Egypt. He was viewed by many as one of the most influential Copts in modern history.

Early life

He was born in Nazlet El Seman in the Giza province. He later studied law at Cairo University.

Career

He held the following offices:

He represented Egypt 5 times at the Congress of the Conference of European Constitutional Courts. In the 1996 Conference that was held in Budapest, his performance convinced the President of the Congress to name Egypt as an observant member at the Conference of European Constitutional Courts.

Judge Sami Farag (R) at the Presidential Palace after a closed meeting with former president Hosni Mubarak (L). Judge Sami Farag (R) representing the Egyptian judiciary system in a cabinet meeting with former President Hosni Mubarak (L).

He trained and was the mentor of Egyptian President Adly Mansour.

President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi couldn't attend the funeral, so he sent General Mohamed Rostom to represent him instead.

Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria said after his death that Sami Farag was "a pious and great judge, a loyal servant to his church and his country."