Having practiced law for more than 20 years, Paula S. Silverstein is an experienced attorney that seeks to make a difference in her clients’ lives through administering effective legal solutions and delivering caring client service in her general practice firm as a Partner. Having the experience of handling a variety of complicated cases over the years, she knows when to fight and when to settle your matter.
Leading up to her legal career, Paula attended the undergraduate program at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania. In 1991, Paula graduated from Widener University School of Law, having served as Law Clerk to the City of Philadelphia’s Law Department for over a year, where she appeared in State and Federal Trial and Appellate Courts throughout Pennsylvania. The same year of her graduation from law school, Ms. Silverstein was appointed as an Assistant City Solicitor for the City of Philadelphia and its Operating Departments, where she contributed as Counsel to the Philadelphia Mayor’s Office and the City of Philadelphia’s and to the Police Department and was assigned to the Major Trials Unit, having gotten a tremendous amount of trial experience.
Seeking to enter into the private sector, Paula accepted an Associate Attorney position with the very large law firm of Post & Schell, P.C.in Philadelphia. Ms. Silverstein was an Associate in the General Liability Department, where she gained valuable experience handling a wide range of civil litigation matters.
Adding yet another valuable area to her experience, Ms. Silverstein left Post & Schell, P.C. to serve as in-house counsel for two major insurance carriers, where she handled cases concerning general liability, construction and surety construction cases and insurance issues from the carrier perspective. The experience she gleaned from her time as an insurance defense attorney now contributes to her ability to foresee and understand her opponents’ strategies when representing her clients in a wide range of personal injury and civil litigation conflicts. After that, she opened the Law Firm of Ilkhanoff & Silverstein, P.C. in 1999 with her legal partner and husband, Bernard Ilkhanoff.
Attorney Silverstein is licensed to practice in the states of Pennsylvania, Maryland and New Jersey and she is admitted to the United States Supreme Court and the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Paula has a Certificate of Completion for Divorce/Custody Mediation, completed on June 1, 2019 as well as completion of other Mediation Trainings.
Ms. Silverstein is continuously looking for ways to improve her skills and her clients’ experience. She routinely seeks out new educational courses to further her legal knowledge. She routinely attends the York County Bar Association, Bench Bar Conference and the County Conference of Bar Leaders with her law partner who is a Committee leader for that legal conference.
Both attorneys support various charitable endeavors for many community and civic organizations and both consider that very important.
Professional Associations and Memberships
• York County Bar Association Bench Bar Committee – 2016, 2018, Past Board Member for Two Terms and past President of the Family Law Section and Solo and Small Firm Section of the York County Bar Association.
• Lancaster County Bar Association – Member and Current Vice-Chair for the Solo and Small Firm Section.
• York County Bar Association, Nominating Committee
• Lancaster County Sunrise Rotary and past Board Member
• PA Association of Justice (Trial Lawyers) Member
• Southern Branch YMCA, Past Board Member and President of the Board