Fepulea'i Attila Ropati (born 1968) is a

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands (Manono Island, Manono an ...

n judge who served as President of the

Land and Titles Court of Samoa The Land and Titles Court of Samoa is a specialist court dealing with Matai titles and customary land in Samoa. The Court was originally established in 1903 under the German colonial administration as a Land Commission. It was continued under the ...

from 2016 to 2022. Fepulea'i is from the village of

Saleaula Sale'aula is a village on the central north coast of Savai'i island in Samoa and is the traditional center of the Gaga'emauga political district. Chief council meetings are held at Vaitu’utu’u malae in the village. The village has a populati ...

. He was educated at the

University of the South Pacific The University of the South Pacific (USP) is a public university, public research university with locations spread throughout a dozen countries in Oceania. Established in 1968, the university is organised as an intergovernmental organisation and ...

, University of New England and the

University of Tasmania The University of Tasmania (UTAS) is a public research university, primarily located in Tasmania, Australia. Founded in 1890, it is Australia's fourth oldest university. Christ College, one of the university's residential colleges, first pro ...

. He has previously worked as a lawyer, for the Samoa Shipping Corporation and for the Land and Titles Court. From 2008 to 2016 he was Clerk of the

Legislative Assembly of Samoa The Legislative Assembly ( sm, Fono Aoao Faitulafono a Samoa), also known as the Parliament of Samoa ( sm, Palemene o Samoa), is the national legislature of Samoa, seated at Apia, where the country's central administration is situated. Samoan P ...

. In July 2016 he was appointed as President of the Land and Titles Court, and he was sworn in on 1 August 2016.

Controversy

In December 2017 Fepulea'i smashed a bottle on the head of a security guard at an end of year party. In March 2018 he took leave from his position as President of the court until criminal charges were resolved. He subsequently pleased guilty to a charge of actual bodily harm, and was discharged without conviction. Following an appeal from the Attorney-General, a re-trial was ordered, and in February 2019 Fepulea'i was convicted of intentionally causing bodily harm and fined US$3,500. In April 2019 he resigned from office, then changed his mind. He was subsequently suspended by the Judicial Services Commission, which recommended he be removed from office. A motion to terminate his position was put before the

, but failed to pass by the required two-thirds majority. Then Deputy-Prime Minister

Fiamē Naomi Mataʻafa Afioga Fiamē Naomi Mataafa (born 29 April 1957) () is a Samoan politician and High Chiefess ('' matai'') who has served as the seventh Prime Minister of Samoa and leader of the Faatuatua i le Atua Samoa ua Tasi (FAST) party since 2021. Th ...

spoke strongly for his removal. In August 2021 Fepulea'i and the entire Lands and Titles Court boycotted the welcome ceremony for the newly-appointed Minister of Justice. In November 2021 the Land and Titles Court announced that former Electoral Commissioner Faimalomatumua Mathew Lemisio would be appointed Deputy President of the Court. Following the announcement, Minister of Justice

Matamua Vasati Pulufana Matamua Seumanu Vasati Pulufana is a Samoan politician and Cabinet Minister. She is a member of the FAST Party. Matamua is the wife of former MP Tiata Sili Pulufana and is a former educator. She was first elected to the Legislative Assembly o ...

suspended the appointment process on the grounds that a "drafting error" in the

Land and Titles Bill The Land and Titles Bill is one of three bills passed by the Legislative Assembly of Samoa to reform the legal framework around the Land and Titles Court of Samoa and Samoan customary law. The bills are viewed by some as undermining human rights a ...

meant that there were no legal provisions for appointments to the court. Attorney-General

Su'a Hellene Wallwork Su'a Hellene Wallwork-Lamb is a Samoan lawyer and jurist. Since September 2021 she has been Attorney-General of Samoa. Su'a is from Lefaga and was educated at the University of Auckland. After working in the Office of the Attorney-General, she r ...

subsequently issued a formal opinion that the lack of appointment provisions meant that no appointments could be made until further legislation had been passed, and that the ''Komisi o Fa'amasinoga o Fanua ma Suafa'', intended to be an appointments and supervisory body for the court, was legally powerless. On this basis, Matamua ordered the Ministry of Justice and Courts Administration not to progress the appointments in any way. Despite this, on 17 December 2021 Fepulea'i purported to swear in Faimalomatumua and two other judges without warrants of appointment from the ''O le Ao o le Malo'', claiming the appointments were "made by God". Prime Minister

denounced the appointments as illegal. On 29 October 2022 the Samoan cabinet told Ropati to vacate office by 1 November. On 30 October the ''

Samoa Observer The ''Samoa Observer'' is the largest newspaper group in Samoa published in both English and Samoan. The ''Samoa Observer'' is published Monday to Friday, the ''Weekend Observer'' on Saturdays and the ''Sunday Samoan'' on Sundays with all editi ...

'' reported that Supreme Court justice

Lesatele Rapi Vaai Lesatele Rapi Vaai is a Samoan judge and President of the Land and Titles Court of Samoa. He served on the Supreme Court of Samoa until 2017, and again from 2020. Vaai is a former president of the Samoa law Society. He was appointed to the Distric ...

would be sworn in to replace him. On 1 November the supreme Court refused to grant an interim injunction against Ropati's ousting, and Vaii was sworn in as President of the court on 2 November 2022. In June 2024 the Supreme Court ruled that Fepulea'i had been unlawfully removed from office and awarded him $750,000 in compensation.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ropati, Fepulea'i Attila Living people People from Gaga'emauga Land and Titles Court of Samoa judges Samoan lawyers University of the South Pacific alumni University of Tasmania alumni Year of birth missing (living people)