About Ronald I.
Ronald I. Heller earned both an MBA (1979) and a J.D. (1980) from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. He completed those graduate degrees in successive years, combining business training and legal study early in his career. The dual background has informed his work for more than four decades.
He entered practice in 1980 as an associate at Hoddick Reinwald O Connor & Marrack. The firm gave him exposure to client-side transactional work and courtroom matters. He became a partner in 1984 at Reinwald O Connor & Marrack, stepping into a leadership role as the firm handled increasingly complex cases and business clients.
In 1988 he joined Torkildson Katz Moore Hetherington & Harris as a director. That move placed him in a larger Honolulu-based firm at a time when his combined accounting and legal credentials were in demand. Over the years he has balanced courtroom appearances and advisory work, moving between litigation strategy and the practical details of business and tax issues.
Heller is admitted to practice in the State of Hawaii, before the Ninth Circuit and the United States Supreme Court. He also holds certification as a Certified Public Accountant in Hawaii. His CPA credential runs alongside a long-standing involvement in the profession’s civic side. Since 1988 he has served on the Board of Directors of the Hawaii Society of Certified Public Accountants, a role that has kept him engaged with the accounting community and current developments in tax practice.
Colleagues describe a lawyer who draws on both disciplines when evaluating cases. He has handled matters that call for an understanding of financial records, regulatory compliance and the procedural rigor of appellate practice. He has argued matters in federal forums and advised business clients on transactional questions, often bringing accounting analysis to bear on legal problems.
He practices from the Honolulu office of Torkildson Katz Moore Hetherington & Harris. His work today combines litigation and advisory assignments, and his practice focuses on civil litigation, business and tax matters.
