James P. Peterson is a member of the firm's Private Equity & Venture Capital, Transactional & Securities and International Practices. His practice includes acquisitions, divestitures, investment of private equity and venture capital funds and general corporate law. He represents private equity acquirers, as well as emerging and mature businesses.
Mr. Peterson has been Peer Review Rated as AV® Preeminent™, the highest performance rating in Martindale-Hubbell's peer review rating system and was selected by Chambers USA (2007-2011) as a leading corporate and mergers and acquisitions attorney. He was also selected by his peers for inclusion in the 2011 and 2012 editions of The Best Lawyers in America® for his leveraged buyouts and private equity law work.
Prior to practicing law, Mr. Peterson represented the State of Wisconsin's interests at the State of Wisconsin Office of Federal-State Relations in Washington, D.C. and worked as a staff member for the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means.
Mr. Peterson is chairman of the board of directors of St. Aemilian-Lakeside, a non-profit organization which provides therapy, prevention, education and support services for foster care families and Wisconsin's children. He also serves as chairman of Integrated Family Services, Inc. which provides ongoing case management and safety services for the children and families from Milwaukee County who are assigned to IFS by a protective services court order or are at high risk for entering the court system. Mr. Peterson also is on the board of directors of Capitol West Academy, a tuition-free charter school for kindergarten to eighth grade students.
Mr. Peterson is a 1995 graduate of Northwestern University School of Law and earned a bachelor's degree in history at Georgetown University in 1989. Mr. Peterson is a member of the State Bar of Wisconsin, the Milwaukee Bar Association and the American Bar Association.