Murtha Cullina attorney Stephen Ronai has died. He was 83 years old. Courtesy photo

Former colleagues are saying farewell to longtime Murtha Cullina partner Stephen Ronai, who died April 30 after a long illness.

Ronai was 83 years old, and considered among fellow attorneys as the "godfather of health care law in Connecticut."

Attorneys remember his determination, which they attributed to his upbringing.

"He left Nazi-infested Hungary with his mother when he was just 5 years old, and that shaped him," Murtha Cullina partner Al Smith Jr. said. "He was instilled with a real drive and a real hunger for success. His father, who came to the United States a few years earlier, was a professional in Hungary, and had to take a lesser job in the United States. That upbringing manifested itself in every way, from the way Stephen dressed to even how he did bills. … He often lamented the move from business dress to casual. He enjoyed wearing suits."

His colleagues said Ronai took pride in his work, and paid attention to details.

"Steve taught me that billing is an art," Smith said. "You don't just put down that you put in two hours writing a memo. Clients are reading the bill and it's essential to be able to convey to that client the value of their work."

Ronai, who mentored numerous younger attorneys, was Big Law's go-to attorney when it came to health care laws and regulations, according to Smith.

"Stephen's legacy is going to be the development of the health care and long-term care practice here and statewide," said Smith, who joined the firm 34 years ago, soon after Ronai. "He is one of the godfathers of health care law. He was one of the first to do it."

A former labor attorney, Ronai decided in the early 1980s to switch practices, and enter a field few had dabbled in at the time: health care law.

"Steve was one of the first and best health care lawyers out there," Smith said. "He saw an opportunity to provide legal help to an increasing regulated industry. Clients, like hospitals and health care providers, wanted lawyers who understood the business and the regulatory regime under which they operated and Steve immersed himself in that."

Ronai joined Murtha Cullina in 1984 and was the head of its health care practice for more than 20 years. He worked out of the firm's New Haven offices, and was of counsel for Murtha Cullina at the time of his death.

Ronai was also a mentor to many, including Smith and former Murtha Cullina health care attorney Michele Volpe.

Volpe, who worked under Ronai's guidance for four years in the mid-1990s, said what Ronai taught her decades ago has stayed with her in her current practice at New Haven's Bershtein, Volpe & McKeon.

"I learned about professionalism and always putting the client first from Steve," Volpe said Wednesday. "I was a young lawyer and was very impressionable. At Murtha, I took everything in, and Steve always put integrity and professionalism first. He learned about professionalism from the culture at Murtha."

Paul Knag, co-chairperson of Murtha Cullina's health care group, has known Ronai since the 1970s. He was chair of Cummings & Lockwood's health care group, while Ronai was at Murtha.

Knag said he became quick friends with Ronai, who excelled at promoting the firm's strengths.

Knag said, "I learned from him the skills of marketing."

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