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Claude Castonguay

Commander
2016
Great Montrealer
1990, economic category

Born in Québec City on May 8, 1929, Claude Castonguay studied at Université Laval’s faculty of science and the University of Manitoba’s centre for actuarial studies. He is a fellow of the Society of Actuaries and the Canadian Institute of Actuaries.

Known as one of the builders of Quebec, Claude Castonguay has left his mark in all of his endeavours: as an actuary for the Task Force on the Quebec Pension Plan, chair of the Task Force on Health Care and Social Services, Minister of Health, Family and Social Welfare and Minister of Social Affairs.

The member for Louis-Hébert in Quebec’s National Assembly, he chaired a number of task forces for the Quebec government. In 1970, he oversaw a major reform of health care and the implementation of Quebec’s health insurance plan.

In the business world, Claude Castonguay was at the helm of the Laurentian Group until 1990, leaving it as one of the leading financial institutions in Canada and Quebec. He then went on to be chairman of the board of the Laurentian Mutual Management Corporation and honorary chairman of the Laurentian Group.

Claude Castonguay was president of the Canadian Institute of Actuaries, a board member of the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and chairman of Crédit Foncier. He is a member of the advisory committee of the Canadian Centre for Management Development, the Society of Actuaries and the Royal Society of Canada.

Claude Castonguay was chancellor of the Université de Montréal and holds honorary doctorates from eight Canadian universities. He has been a Companion of the Order of Canada since 1974.

On September 23, 1990, Claude Castonguay was appointed to the Senate.

Claude Castonguay was chairman of the board of the Laurentian Bank of Canada from 1987 to 1994 and sat in the Senate from September 1990 to December 1992. He also chaired the committee of experts on drug insurance for Quebec in 1995–96. He was a member of the board of the Raoul-Dandurand Chair of Strategic and Diplomatic Studies beginning in 1997 and vice-chair of the steering committee for the History of Montréal project of the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS). He published Mémoires d’un révolutionnaire tranquille in 2005.

Claude Castonguay was named a Grand Québécois in 2000. He received the Albert-Leblanc medal from Université de Sherbrooke’s faculty of law in 2003 and holds 11 honorary degrees. He was named a fellow of the Centre interuniversitaire de recherche en analyse des organisations (CIRANO) in 2005.

Claude Castonguay was inducted into the Academy of Great Montrealers in the Economic category in 1990 and was named a Commander of the Ordre de Montréal in 2016.

Source: Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal, Ordre national du Québec

The picture and biographical information appearing on this page were current at the time this person was admitted to the Academy of Great Montrealers.