France Margaret Bélanger

France Margaret joined the organization in 2013 as Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer after acquiring extensive merger and acquisition experience from her 18 years at the law firm Stikeman Elliott. In 2014, France Margaret was promoted to Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer. In January 2017, she became Executive Vice-President and Chief Commercial Officer as her scope was expanded to lead the hockey commercial strategy. In May 2020, her scope was further broadened to lead the entertainment group, as she continued to oversee legal and public affairs and community relations.

France Margaret is the first woman to serve on the executive committee of the Montreal Canadiens in its 104-year history. She also serves, alongside Geoff Molson, as an NHL Alternate Governor for the Montreal Canadiens. In 2020, she was chosen by Commissioner Gary Bettman to sit on the NHL Executive Inclusion Council.

Before joining the organization, France Margaret was a partner in corporate law with Stikeman Elliott, where she began her career in 1995. Specializing in mergers and acquisitions, she led the team that acted for the Gillett Group in the sale of the Montreal Canadiens and the Bell Centre in 2009. She also represented the Saputo family in the acquisition of the Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise, the Montreal Impact.

France Margaret developed an expertise in the aviation industry, having represented, among others, ACE Aviation, Air Canada, and ACTS in several transactions.

An expert in her field, France Margaret has been honored by multiple prestigious industry publications, earning mentions in The Best Lawyers in Canada 2013 and The Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory in 2011, 2012, and 2013 as a leading practitioner in the corporate and M&A sectors. She was also recognized as one of "Canada's 40 Rising Stars: Leading Lawyers Under 40" by Lexpert Magazine.

Admitted to the Quebec Bar in November 1995, France Margaret earned a Civil Law degree from the University of Ottawa with a Cum Laude distinction. She also completed a Master in Business Administration in the EMBA McGill-HEC Montreal program in 2014.

France Margaret received the Order of Merit of the Law Faculty of the University of Ottawa in 2015 and the Desautels Management Achievement Award of McGill University in 2019.