Josh Silverstein was a first-year law student at New York University when he was recruited to help CAC during its inaugural summer of 1994. He worked on issues related to the freedom of information, campaign finance, and local government, but also found himself moving furniture and helping organize the office with the three other interns. 

Assignments were not always easy for an inexperienced law student. Silverstein was asked to locate an unpublished opinion about home rule at the DuPage County courthouse, without understanding how the records were organized. He went through the files sequentially, one by one, and found the decision after three days of searching. 

Three decades later, the full professor of law at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock reflected on how long that task would take him now: “About 10 minutes.”

 Silverstein became a member of the Citizen Advisory Council for CAC when he graduated from law school in 1996, joined the CAC board a few years later, and is still serving in 2024. When he started practicing law after graduation, it was rewarding but different from his work with CAC.

 “It’s a profession, but it’s also a business,” he said. “A law firm is about paying clients.” 

By contrast, CAC “is not worried about whether clients can afford to pay.” When CAC takes on a litigation matter, the question is whether the case reflects its mission: “How can we advance the ability of citizens to participate in government?”

 Silverstein said both approaches are valid, but, for him, giving back to the community— whether through teaching or working with CAC—has turned out to be more meaningful.