Not only did the late Stephen Sigurdson, Law’84, help guide the law school at Queen’s, he also helped shape the business landscape in Canada through his work on major transactions. On June 15, the Canadian General Counsel Awards (CGCA) paid the latest tribute to his memory with its Lifetime Achievement Award. 

“Brilliant mind, brilliant intellect, great lawyer, great executive – he was the full package.” Those are the words used to describe Sigurdson, former Executive VP and General Counsel of Manulife Financial Corp. by the company’s CEO, Donald Guloien. 

Leslie Sigurdson, Law’84, with family members at her side, accepted the CGCA’s highest award on behalf of her husband at a gala in Toronto. Six weeks earlier at the Celebrate Queen’s Law reception, she accepted his HRS Ryan Law Alumni Award of Distinction, the school’s top honour for graduates. At that event, Dean Bill Flanagan announced the Stephen Sigurdson Professorship in Corporate Law and Finance, created with contributions totalling $1.5 million from alumni and friends in support of the endowed position.  

Watch the CGCA – BLG Stephen Sigurdson Lifetime Achievement Award video on the CGCA website. It features remarks on Sigurdson’s life and work by Dean Bill Flanagan, Sheila Murray, Law’82, David Allgood, Law’74, and Justine Wiebe, Law’92, as well as photos of the Sigurdson family and many more alumni. 

Read the article, “Lawyers fondly recall Lifetime Achievement winner Stephen Sigurdson,” in the Financial Post. 

The Sigurdson Professorship will be featured in the cover story of Supporting Excellence 2017, a Queen’s Law magazine published in November.  

By Lisa Graham