not confirmed here -64bit c8 with update. Open Cubase, load old template, close project. C8 shuts down
I stand corrected. I just did the same in 8.05 and cubase was indeed NOT running directly afterwards. Not sure if that will hold after a crash, but maybe I won’t have to find out.
the same for me…
I have the solution from the steinberg hotline :
you must update the elicenser control to 6.9.2.1181 and initialising preferences of cubase, and it’ll will be OK
DAvvv
I have this issue of BUT only after a crash on exit.
If Cubase closes normally then everything is OK, however if I get a crash on exit then Cubase is still running and hogging RAM in the background and can been seen in task manager.
Mighty as Cubase is as a DAW (and it is amazing software) it has always been a very quirky application.
I mean how many years has “has crash on exit” been a Cubase thing - must be over 10 years now!
Then there’s the running of plugin scans twice a year for British summer time changes.
I’ve just learnt to live with the little eccentricities of the program 
I used to get this issue quite regularly on c7 & 7.5 on larger projects but not so far on 8.5.
I now avoid VST3 versions of slate plugins as they do seem to cause issues from time to time… VST2 versions seem fine though from my own experience.
I’ve been using Cubase since VST (and not lightly) and have never found it to be “quirky.” Nor have I experienced constant crashes on closing (or otherwise). What I have seen is a lot of third party plugin issues or badly maintained systems, and inexperienced or lazy users that contribute greatly to issues that often get blamed on Cubase and/or Nuendo. If you have years of constant crashes to look back on, I guarantee you that Cubase is not the primary culprit. I troubleshoot a lot of DAW systems, and invariably the primary issue is typically user related first, third party plugins, then the program, no matter which one is in use.
And let’s not forget porn. Yes, porn. Never ceases to amaze me how many systems develop issues because of post-session-porn-surfing. They never admit it, and it is always “the damned program,” acting up when they call me, but the footprint doesn’t lie. Sorry for the venting, just saying… 
All normal here I’m afraid.
This happened to me and it turned out to be Waves plugins. I think it was fixed with a Waves update.