Alexander Kennedy Paterson

Throughout his career, Alex K. Paterson was very actively involved in a number of charitable organizations. He served as honorary president of the Summit School’s fundraising campaign and as a member of the advisory board of McGill University’s Faculties of Law and Dentistry.

He was also Chancellor of Bishop’s University, co-chairman of the board of directors of the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada, a member of the Montreal General Hospital Ethics Committee and a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers Association.

Alex K. Paterson is also committed to the educational sector. Most notably, he served as president of the Mackay Centre and as the president of the Centre’s Foundation. He was also appointed chairman of the Board of Governors (1990–1994) of McGill University and a member of its Executive Committee (1988–1994) and chairman of the Consultative Committee and president of the Corporation of Bishop’s University (1974–1979).

His marked interest for education and his will to further legislation in this particular sector led to his appointment as a special inquirer for the Quebec government in relation to labour disputes in 1976 in Quebec’s schools and CEGEPs.

An attorney for the McGill University teaching hospitals beginning in 1972, he taught medical law at McGill from 1973 to 1979 and served as chairman of the Steering Committee responsible for setting up the McGill University Hospital Centre, where he was interim chairman of the board of directors from 1994 to 1995. The Quebec government also called upon him to act as head negotiator during the Oka Crisis.

In 1996, Alex K. Paterson was awarded the Medal of Honour of the Bar of Montreal and the Distinguished Friends of Education Award, presented by CASE District 1 in Boston. Named an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1982, Alex K. Paterson was appointed an Officer of the Ordre national du Québec in 1993.

Dawson College awarded him an honorary diploma in recognition of his public service (1991); he was presented the Award of Merit by the McGill University Alumni Association (1986), became an officer of the Order of Canada (1982) and received an Award of Merit (1996) and an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from McGill University (1994) and an honorary Doctor of Civil Law degree from Bishop’s University (1974).

Founding Chairman of Alliance Quebec in 1982, Alex K. Paterson later became involved in other organizations, such as the Council for Canadian Unity; in 1980, he served as vice-president of the Quebec/Canada Pre-Referendum Executive Committee of the National Committee for the No.

Alexander Kennedy Paterson has served as a director of APV-Hall Crepaco Inc., the Laurentian Bank of Canada and the Laurentian Trust of Canada. He was also a director of the Fondation de l’Ordre des ingénieurs du Québec from 1994 to 1995.

Alexander Kennedy Paterson was inducted into the Academy of Great Montrealers in the Scientific category in 1998 and was named a Commander of the Ordre de Montréal in 2016.