N. Damali Peterman, Esq.
Mediator, Special Master, Neutral Evaluator & Hearing Officer
Description of field of expertise
Damali Peterman, Esq., is a distinguished conflict resolution professional, neutral and problem solver. With over 20 years of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) experience working as a mediator, conflict resolution trainer, ADR entrepreneur and corporate transactional lawyer in private and in-house practice, Ms. Peterman is renowned for her innovative and engaging ways to help companies, institutions, nonprofits, government agencies and individuals prevent, manage and resolve conflict.
Prior to joining JAMS, Ms. Peterman founded Breakthrough ADR, a global conflict resolution firm that helps organizations resolve conflict and teaches people how to listen, negotiate and resolve everyday situations in the workplace and beyond. Through Breakthrough ADR, she routinely addresses acute and chronic inter- and intra-company conflict and provides conflict resolution/mediation training and conflict coaching to thousands of individuals and companies.
Prior to Breakthrough ADR, Ms. Peterman founded a law firm focusing on corporate and other business transactions. Previously, she was an assistant general counsel at Deloitte LLP and an associate at the global law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges.
Ms. Peterman believes that, in addition to enabling positive business changes, ADR is critical to empowering positive social change. To this end, through Breakthrough ADR and community organizations, she has been privileged to train hundreds of law enforcement officers in New York City and elsewhere in ADR-based techniques for de-escalation and resolving conflict without the use of force.
Ms. Peterman travels globally to teach workshops in negotiation and mediation and to judge mediation competitions. She also virtually teaches students, educators and other professionals across the world. Ms. Peterman is a highly sought after speaker, and she has been featured on various television networks and in many magazines and newspapers.
What advice would you offer to new attorneys interested in your field?
First, there is no one path to ADR. I focused on conflict resolution while pursuing my master’s degree and became a mediator before becoming a lawyer. Prior to attending Howard Law School, I studied in conflict resolution in The Hague, the Netherlands—the epicenter of peace theory. I was a corporate transactional attorney, not a litigator, and I also studied improv. All of these experiences helped me to stand out as an ADR practitioner.
Second, you can apply your ADR skills—active listening, effective communication and de-escalation—to most situations, both within and outside of legal practice. You will be a better lawyer if you learn how to listen like a mediator, and you might find that you are also a better friend, spouse and colleague too.
Third, you should always show up as your authentic self. Don’t wait until you are a third-year associate to feel comfortable showing them who you are.
Additional Information…
My new book, Negotiating While Black: Be Who You Are to Get What You Want, is now available for preorder wherever you buy books! Published by Penguin Random House’s Putnam imprint, it covers on negotiations and implicit bias. Order yours: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/721852/negotiating-while-black-by-damali-peterman/.
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