The death by suicide of prominent Coral Gables trial attorney Ervin Gonzalez thrust the issue of mental illness into focus for lawyers in South Florida.

A statement from Colson Hicks Eidson law firm partner Dean Colson did not mention suicide but raised the subject of mental illness, saying, “It pains us to know he was suffering so terribly beyond his control.”

Gonzalez died Thursday at his Coral Gables home. He played high-profile roles in the BP oil spill and Chinese drywall multidistrict litigation, consumer class actions and wrongful death cases.