With great sadness we announce that our Cassels partner and good friend Stéphane Teasdale passed away on Saturday September 5, 2020, at the too young age of 57, after a two-year battle with colon cancer.

Born and raised in Montreal, Stéphane attended law school at the University of Ottawa, and was called to the Quebec Bar in 1988 and then the Ontario Bar in 2017.

Stéphane loved his work as a lawyer, and over his 30-year career became a specialist in franchise law in Quebec, the rest of Canada, and internationally, first as a partner at Pouliot Mercure and then Dentons in Montreal. Family circumstances brought him to our firm in Toronto about four years ago, and so we had the honour of practising with him for a number of years in our Toronto office until illness required that he go on leave. He always talked about returning to the practice of law and the clients he loved, but it was not meant to be.

He became a leader in the field in Quebec, and a pillar of the Quebec Franchise Council.

Those who knew him would likely agree that he had a certain "joie de vivre" - love for life - in part likely resulting from his Quebecois roots. If you were in his company that usually meant some adventure, followed by a fine meal, with extra special wines.

As a true Montrealer, one of his laments about living in Toronto was our apparent inability to take the time from our busy days for at least a few "proper" lunches (which of course required that a bottle of wine be consumed). Proof to him of the cultural superiority of Montreal vs. Toronto!

He leaves his wife Nicole Gervais, and their daughter Elizabeth.

He will be sorely missed by his many colleagues in the franchise community, and his entire Cassels family.

In lieu of flowers, the family has asked you to consider a memorial donation to The Princess Margaret Hospital Cancer Foundation. The Princess Margaret Hospital is a Toronto-based, world renowned hospital facility devoted to cancer research and clinical care.