In Memoriam

David Fushtey
David Fushtey, LLB’88

On October 8, 2019, David Fushtey passed away at St. John Hospice in Vancouver at the age of 64. Dave was born on August 21, 1955, in Guelph, Ontario, to Ruth and Steve Fushtey. Beloved husband to Moura Quayle, Dave was a true Renaissance man: a landscape architect, sculptor and multi-talented lawyer. He loved music, art and beauty. Law was everything Dave believed in – discipline, justice and consideration of others without compromising his values.

Dave actively followed his dreams. He had fallen in love with the art of stone sculpture and this passion led him to start a program called “Stoneworks” for street youth. But his commitment to words and the rule of law drew him back to create The Governance Counsel in 2002 to focus on his passion for governance – the effective exercise of informed authority.

Dave was a Fellow at the Centre for Dialogue at Simon Fraser University (SFU) where he valued the staff and students of the Centre. These experiences led to the May 2019 publication of The Director and the Manager: Law and Governance in a Digital Age: Machiavelli Had it Easy. The 1000-page text includes direction for the emerging discipline of governance and was a celebration of years of thinking, researching, writing, editing and compilation. At the SFU book launch, Dave was his usual humble, funny and deeply thoughtful self.

Dave was passionately involved in politics. Most recently he worked to build bridges with China and was privileged to visit Huawei in Shenzhen with students in May 2019, where he developed enduring relationships. Dave loved his work with youth, mentoring many students and young professionals. He truly wanted to help people understand how legal and regulatory systems should evolve to enable positive relationships in our complex world.

From a young age Dave showed leadership, kindness and courage, and he worked tirelessly in his pursuit of justice. He will be dearly missed.