Bulgarian-Speaking Attorneys

James Randal Ackley

West Palm Beach, FL

James Randal Ackley, also known as Randy Ackley, is a civil trial attorney and founder of the Law Offices of James R. Ackley, P.A. With over 40 years of experience, he specializes in personal injury, foreclosure defense, and real estate litigation. He is an "AV" (Preeminent) rated litigator, admitted to practice in Florida and federal district courts, and has extensive experience in managing disaster relief programs globally.

Sofia Zneimer

Chicago, IL

Sofia Zneimer is an experienced immigration lawyer and litigator with a focus on personal injury cases. She has a proven track record in immigration applications and petitions for individuals and businesses, and has received multiple William J. Harte Amicus Volunteer Awards for her contributions to the ITLA Amicus Curiae Committee.

Benedict V. James, Esq.

Las Vegas, NV

Benedict V. James, known as Ben by friends and family, is a founding partner of SJW Injury Attorneys. Ben is a dedicated and zealous representative of his clients. He learned early in life that it is critical that people fight for the rights of the disadvantaged. Ben, who is originally from Bulgaria, participated in a refugee program as a child and, along with his family, was granted legal residence in the United States. However, before he left, he saw firsthand the effects of persecution and mistreatment of the underprivileged. This ultimately drove Ben to pursue a career in the legal field. He attended law school and earned his degree from the oldest law school in Texas, Baylor Law School in Waco. After graduating from law school, Ben worked for several thriving personal injury law firms where he successfully represented thousands of clients who were injured by another’s negligence. Ben has conducted many jury trials throughout the state of Texas and is admitted to each of the state’s federal district courts. After founding a successful and thriving injury practice in Austin, Texas and making millions for his clients, Ben teamed up with fellow attorneys Esteban Sandoval and Shawn Walkenshaw to establish SJW Injury Attorneys here in Las Vegas. The partnership was a natural one as Ben, Esteban, and Shawn all share a passion for zealously representing their clients. Ben and Shawn work together on SJW’s litigated matters, using their combined experience to ensure the best possible outcome for every SJW client. Ben is fluent in the Bulgarian language, allowing him to communicate well with not just the Bulgarian community, but with the Serbian and Macedonian communities as well. One of Ben’s passions is chess, and one of Ben’s favorite personal achievements is having a positive record against one of the famous chess hustlers in the historic Washington Square Park in New York City. Like litigation, chess is all about hard work, dedication, creativity, and strategy - important attributes that have helped Ben become a legal force to be reckoned with in the courtroom and a formidable foe on the chessboard as well.

Ivo Tchernev

Chicago, IL

Ivo Tchernev focuses on complex personal injury cases, including trucking and construction injuries, and represents corporate clients in Federal and State courts. He also serves as outside general counsel for freight carriers and brokers, handling commercial contracts, employee relations, and cargo claims. Ivo manages the firm's appellate work, having authored winning briefs, and is active in the Bulgarian community, educating them on legal rights. He graduated from Georgetown University in 2004 and Chicago Kent-College of Law in 2010.

David W. Daudell

Chicago, IL

David W. Daudell is an attorney with 30 years of experience, established his firm in 1992. He represents clients throughout the Illinois area in a wide range of legal services including family & divorce law, bankruptcy, personal injury, criminal defense, probate, and real estate transactions.

Makedonka “Miki” Baloski

North Barrington, IL

Makedonka “Miki” Baloski has over two decades of legal experience, focusing on estate and trust administration, probate, elder law, and wealth preservation. She is fluent in Macedonian and conversant in Serbo-Croatian and Bulgarian.

Leonel Ruiz is a civil litigator with experience in both defense and plaintiffs’ practice. Leonel’s practice includes construction litigation, personal injury, property damage litigation, and commercial litigation. Leonel was born and raised in El Paso, Texas, where he lived until he finished his undergraduate degree-a triple major B.A. in Political Science, Psychology, and Creative Writing with honors. Leonel then moved to Phoenix, Arizona, where he taught 8th Grade Social Studies as part of Teach for America; he also got his Master’s Degree in Secondary Education from Arizona State University. From here, Leonel moved to Austin, Texas, to get his Juris Doctor from the University of Texas School of Law. During law school, Leonel served as an officer for the Chicano Hispanic Law Student Association (CHLSA) and was editor in chief of the Texas Hispanic Journal of Law and Policy. Leonel’s main practice is in New Mexico, but he is also licensed to practice in Texas, Colorado, and Arizona. Moreover, Leonel is fluent in Spanish-college level-and conversational Bulgarian.

Alexandra D. Bondikov

New York, NY

Alexandra D. Bondikov is a Senior Immigration Attorney at Pollack, Pollack, Isaac & DeCicco, LLP. In addition to speaking Russian and Bulgarian, Ms. Bondikov possesses wide immigration law experience, including employment-based nonimmigrant and immigrant petitions, and representation of individual and corporate clients in all stages of administrative proceedings. Before joining PPID, Ms. Bondikov was a principal at the Immigration Law Center in Lynn, Massachusetts, for 12 years where she practiced in a wide array of immigration law areas, including H-1B, TN, L-1, O-1, P, and E nonimmigrant visas; EB 1 and NIW visa petitions; permanent labor certifications; audits and compliance issues.

Inna Nikolova

Chicago, IL

Inna Nikolova is a summa cum laude graduate from Cleveland State University (2020) and DePaul University College of Law (2024). She interned at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and clerked at a private consumer law firm. Inna focuses on personal injury law and is a member of the Women's Bar Association of Illinois. She speaks French and Bulgarian.

Dallin Morrow

Layton, UT

Dallin Taylor Morrow is an Associate Attorney at LeBaron & Jensen, specializing in personal injury, wrongful death, probate administration, and divorce mediation. He is also a certified social worker and has experience conducting internal investigations for a pharmaceutical corporation in Washington D.C.

Iliana Dobrev was born in Bulgaria. After high school, she immigrated to the United States to study law. She graduated magna cum laude from Georgia State University with a Bachelor’s in political science concentrating on pre-law and minoring in Spanish. In 2015, she graduated from Georgia State University College of Law. While in law school, Iliana completed a Graduate Research Assistantship in Labor and Employment Law and Employment Discrimination and two externships in Immigration Law. As an immigrant herself, Iliana is passionate about advocating for and defending immigrants. She is delighted to help families stay together and pursue the American dream. Iliana is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and worked in both a fellowship and a firm specializing in immigration law. Iliana is fluent in Bulgarian and Spanish

Kathryn L. Mason

Boston, MA

Paralegal working closely with the firm’s Real Estate attorneys, providing support with document preparation, transaction coordination, and the closing process. Has interned with the Northwestern District Attorney’s Office, a Massachusetts State Representative, and a Massachusetts District Court Judge. Fluent in Bulgarian, proficient in Spanish.