Teodora Purcell

Attorney Teodora Purcell is an EB-5 immigration attorney and special counsel to Duane Morris LLP, a law firm with more than 800 attorneys in offices across the nation and the globe. Attorney Purcell practices in the firm’s San Diego, Calif., office. Her practice focuses on the field of U.S. immigration and nationality law, and she is a certified specialist in this area by the California State Bar Board of Legal Specialization.

Prior to joining Duane Morris, Attorney Purcell was one of the associates of Fragomen Worldwide. As an immigration lawyer for more than twelve years, Attorney Purcell has handled a wide variety of immigration matters, including both employment-based and family-based immigration cases. She has assisted and provided legal advice to numerous clients who want to live and work legally in the United States. Aside from providing legal assistance to families and workers, she also has experience in federal and administrative immigration appeals, has handled removal and naturalization cases, and other immigration cases. Furthermore, she has assisted foreign firms and businesses with their immigration concerns and requirements. She has handled complicated immigration matters, including a high profile case for a multinational telecommunication company, and has successfully represented clients before the U.S. Federal Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Court.

Aside from handling U.S. immigration and nationality law cases, Attorney Purcell also provides pro bono services to indigent clients. She helps women who are victims of domestic violence with their immigration petitions at Casa Cornelia Law Center. She also helps and represents unaccompanied minors and asylum seekers before federal and immigration courts, as well as U visa or DACA applicants. She is a multiple recipient of the Wiley W. Manuel California State Bar Award and was awarded the Pro Bono Publico Award by Casa Cornelia’s Inn of Court for her pro bono work. The San Diego Daily Transcript also selected Attorney Purcell for its 2014 Top Attorney List in Immigration Law.

Attorney Purcell received her Juris Doctor degree from the St. Clement Ohridski School of Law at Sofia University. She then moved to the United States to obtain her Master of Laws at the University of San Diego – School of Law. She is admitted to practice law in California and Bulgaria. Attorney Purcell is an active member and leader of several professional organizations and associations, including the American Bar Association, the Lawyers Club of San Diego, the San Diego County Bar Association and the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), BIOCOM, and she serves on or chairs several committees with these organizations. Having been exposed to different countries and cultures, Attorney Teodora Purcell is multilingual, and apart from English, can converse well in Spanish, Russian and Bulgarian.