About Us

Teodora (Teo) D. Purcell is a distinguished immigration attorney whose work is influenced by her own immigrant journey. Born and raised in Bulgaria, she earned JD and LLM degrees from Sofia University in 1998, followed by an LLM in Comparative Law from the University of San Diego in 2001. Licensed in both California and Bulgaria, Ms. Purcell has over 20 years of experience and has been a California State Bar–Certified Specialist in Immigration and Nationality Law since 2011.

She is the founding partner of Purcell Law, APC, a boutique immigration law firm in San Diego focused on business and family immigration, global mobility, and compliance. Her career includes leadership roles at top firms such as Fragomen, Duane Morris, Tafapolsky & Smith, and Larrabee Albi Coker, where she represented Fortune 500 companies, startups, entrepreneurs, and individuals in complex immigration matters. Her court admissions include the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Ninth, Tenth, and Fifth Circuits, and the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.

Ms. Purcell’s expertise spans employment-based immigration, family immigration, investment and entrepreneur visas, asylum and humanitarian relief, and administrative/federal appeals. She is also a Global Mobility Talent Specialist (WERC) with deep experience in international transfers and compliance.

Her professional excellence has been recognized through numerous awards, including Best Lawyers in America – Immigration Law, Forbes Advisor Best Immigration Lawyers in San Diego, Super Lawyers (2016–2025), San Diego Business Journal’s Leaders in Law and Top Women of Influence in Law, as well as pro bono honors such as the Casa Cornelia Distinguished Pro Bono Attorney of the Year Award and the State Bar of California Wiley W. Manuel Award.