President
Neha Khandhadia

Neha Khandhadia is a partner at Goldstein & McClintock LLLP. She focuses her practice on complex commercial litigation, arbitration, and government and internal investigations. She also maintains an active pro bono practice representing clients in a wide range of areas including civil rights, child abuse and neglect, and asylum. Neha holds her Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Political Science and her Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan. While in law school, she served as Managing Editor of the Michigan Journal of International Law. 

President-Elect
Saman Haque 

Secretary 

Ranjini Rajan

Ranjini is a Technical Claim Manager at RLI where she handles architects and engineers professional liability matters.  Prior to joining RLI, Ranjini was an associate at BatesCarey LLP, where her practice focused on insurance coverage disputes.  Ranjini graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2014 with a double major in english and philosophy, and from Loyola University Chicago School of Law in 2017.  

Treasurer

Adnan Shafi

Adnan specializes in municipal liability cases, defending municipalities and law enforcement officers, as well as medical malpractice claims for hospitals and physicians. He also handles commercial litigation, including employment discrimination disputes for corporations. Before joining Johnson & Bell, Adnan gained significant experience as an Assistant State's Attorney with the Cook County State's Attorney's Office. Adnan earned his J.D. from IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law in 2019 and his Master’s in Intellectual Property Law in 2016. Before relocating to the United States, Adnan earned his Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Commerce (Honors) from Amity University in India. Early in his legal career, he worked as a criminal defense attorney, including on the high-profile Arushi Murder Case, later adapted into the Bollywood film Talvar. Adnan has contributed to the South Asian Bar Association of Chicago as a board member for the last few years, including, serving as Treasurer in 2024 and engaging in mentorship, events, and outreach. Outside of his legal career, he enjoys soccer, bike rides, go-karting, golfing, and staying active through regular workouts.

Co-Vice President of Programming

Akshita Singh

Akshita is an associate in Taft’s Chicago office and focuses her practice on corporate law. Akshita has experience working with public and private companies, particularly in capital markets and bank finance transactions, mergers and acquisitions, securities regulatory work, and general corporate matters. Previously, Akshita worked as an industry group coordinator for the Cannabis group of a large international law firm. She has also served as a legal intern with a local cannabis and medical marijuana company, assisting in state applications for medical and recreational cannabis for dispensaries, processing, and cultivation licenses, as well as performing compliance and regulation research for both medical and recreational cannabis in various states. Akshita earned her J.D. from the Chicago-Kent College of Law and her bachelor’s degree in government and business from the University of Texas at Austin. While in law school, Akshita was an active member of Women in Law and the Trial Advocacy team. 

Co-Vice President of Programming 

Natasha Ganesh

Co-Vice President of Public Relations

Sameeul Haque

Sameeul Haque is one of the Principal Attorneys at H3LP, focusing his practice on Intellectual Property litigation, trademark prosecution, copyright registration, IP counseling and procurement, and commercial litigation. His work spans everything from enforcing intellectual property rights to advising on ethical open-source software licensing. Samee also handles anti- counterfeiting and infringement matters, ensuring businesses can protect what they have built. Beyond his practice, Samee is active in the legal community. He serves as Vice President of the Organization for Ethical Source and Co-Vice President of Public Relations for the South Asian Bar Association of Chicago. He also teaches trial advocacy as an adjunct professor at Chicago- Kent College of Law and coaches the school’s trial advocacy team. Samee received his J.D. from Chicago-Kent in 2019 and his B.S. from Benedictine University in 2011.

Co-Vice President of Public Relations

Nasir Hussain

Nasir Hussain (Nas) is a senior associate in Winston & Strawn’s disputes practice. He represents the firm’s clients in civil antitrust matters of all kinds, including both conduct and merger litigations, regulatory investigations, compliance counseling, and transactions. Nas has extensive experience working with clients across sectors on antitrust matters, ranging from big tech to pharmaceuticals and health care, and from industrial manufacturing to food and beverage/consumer goods. Nas also represents the firm’s health care clients in regulatory compliance matters and government investigations, with experience managing health care fraud and abuse investigations by the DOJ (False Claims Act, Stark Law, Anti-Kickback Statute) and controlled substances-related matters (DEA investigations and Controlled Substances Act compliance). Nas is based in Chicago, but his practice has a global scope. He has represented clients in several jurisdictions throughout the United States and has been responsible for managing the merger clearance processes through local counsel in several foreign jurisdictions. Nas draws on his experience working in-house for a major life sciences company on secondment from Winston to deliver effective legal services in an efficient manner. In addition to his role as Vice President of Public Relations of SABA Chicago, Nas holds leadership positions in the ABA Litigation Section and the Muslim Bar Association of Greater Chicago. He is also a Governing Member of the NorthShore Hospitals Foundation (part of Endeavor Health) Associate Board, and serves as the Chair of the Chicago Committee on Minorities in Large Law Firms’ Associate Board.

General Director

Abiman Rajadurai

General Director 

Akash Vyas

Akash is an accomplished attorney with over 17 years of legal experience, currently serving as a General Director with the South Asian Bar Association. He is committed to advancing diversity and promoting the professional growth of South Asian attorneys nationwide. Akash began his legal career as an Assistant State’s Attorney with the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, where he served for over 16 years in numerous assignments where he has litigated hundreds of motions and trials. In his last role with the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, Akash served as a First Chair in the Special Prosecutions Bureau. In this capacity, he managed and litigated complex long-term investigations involving violent crimes, money laundering, gunrunning, and criminal drug conspiracies. Akash now serves as an Assistant Chief Counsel with the United States Department of Homeland Security, specializing in federal litigation related to counterterrorism, asylum, United Nations Convention Against Torture claims, and removal proceedings involving human traffickers, terrorists, and national security threats. In addition to his professional work, Akash was recently unanimously appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court to serve as a Commissioner on the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism, reflecting his dedication to fostering ethics, professionalism, and inclusivity within the legal community. Akash is deeply committed to mentorship and public service, continually working to uplift and inspire the next generation of legal professionals.

General Director 

Razaul Haque

Razaul Haque ("Raza") specializes in Commercial Finance and Mergers & Acquisitions, providing strategic counsel to lenders and businesses navigating complex challenges. He earned his Juris Doctor from Chicago-Kent College of Law and a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Raza is also an Adjunct Professor of Trial Advocacy at Chicago-Kent, where he contributes to the development of future legal professionals. He dedicates his time as a volunteer coach for the school’s nationally ranked Trial Advocacy Program. Outside of his professional pursuits, Raza enjoys experimenting in the kitchen, immersing himself in Chicago's house and techno scene, and playing basketball with friends.

General Director

Ridhi Madia

Ridhi is Labor & Employment Counsel at Cprime, Inc., a Goldman Sachs and Everstone Capital consulting firm that specializes in leveraging technology to drive innovation. She supports Cprime’s global labor and employment practice where she advises on matters such as wage and hour law, employee relations, and immigration. She also provides litigation support, compliance guidance, and assists Cprime's commercial group by drafting NDAs, Statement of Works, and Master Service Agreements. Prior to working at Cprime, Ridhi worked as an Associate at Epstein, Becker, & Green, P.C.  After law school, Ridhi served as a Board Member for Givology’s Chicago chapter where she helped fundraise for educational scholarships for young girls in India. Ridhi has also served as a Board Member for the SABA Chicago Foundation. Ridhi received her law degree from the University of Iowa College of Law where she served as a Senior Note & Comment Editor on the Journal of Gender, Race & Justice. In her free time, she enjoys trying Chicago’s amazing restaurants and traveling.

General Director 

Seerah James

Serah graduated from Michigan State University in 2018 with a major in Social Relations and Policy. There she was a volunteer in the Sexual Assault Crisis Intervention program and participated in the Garba-Raas team. After undergrad, she attended an internship at the United Nations Population Fund in New York. Serah then went onto graduate law school and earned her J.D. in 2022 from UIC School of Law. While in law school, she served as an associate justice on the Moot Court Honors Council and served as a TA and peer mentor. After law school, she joined a small business law firm and worked in the litigation department for two years. Serah now works as a personal injury associate in the litigation department of a personal injury firm.

General Director

Febin Abraham

Febin is an associate in Chapman's Banking and Financial Services Department and Commercial Lending Group. He focuses his practice on representing banks, private credit lenders, and other financial institutions in lending transactions involving a wide variety of credit facilities. Febin attended DePaul University College of Law to obtain is J.D. and this is his second year on the Board of SABA Chicago.

General Director

Ayesha Patel

Ayesha Patel is a Deputy Legal Counsel at the Illinois Department of Employment Security. Ayesha previously served as Personnel Counsel at the Illinois Department of Central Management Services and has also served as its Equal Employment Opportunity Officer. Ayesha handled discrimination cases and advised agencies on all employment law matters. Ayesha previously worked at the Office of the Illinois Attorney General where she focused primarily on litigation in federal court. She has also worked for the Legal Department at the Board of Education of the City of Chicago and a boutique law firm in Chicago. Ayesha is a University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign graduate with a Juris Doctor from the University of Illinois Chicago School of Law.

Ayesha currently serves as a General Director of the South Asian Bar Association and is a Board member of the UIC Alumni Board. When she isn’t practicing law, Ayesha enjoys spending time with her family and friends, playing board games, diving into a good book, and traveling.

General Director

Jeena George 

Jeena joined Malman Law in 2023 as an Associate Attorney with a focus in personal injury. Prior to joining Malman Law, she received her Bachelor of Arts in Social Relations & Policy from Michigan State University in 2018. After graduating from MSU, she earned her Juris Doctorate from DePaul University College of Law in 2022 with a Certificate in Criminal Law. During law school, she was the secretary for the Public Interest Law Association. She also clerked in the Felony Trial Division at the Cook County Public Defender’s Office. As a law clerk, she was able to use her 711 license to advocate on behalf of numerous clients. In her free time, she loves to travel around the world, watch scary movies, read mystery novels, explore new brunch spots in Chicago, and spend time with family and friends.

General Director

Sunrita Sen

General Director 

Ronak Shah 

General Director 

Pam Sran