About Colleen L. Byers
Colleen Byers, JD, MBA
Colleen Byers is an attorney mediator providing structured, well-prepared mediation for complex disputes throughout North Carolina, including commercial, trust, estate, and fiduciary litigation.
Colleen is also an Adjunct Professor of Law at Wake Forest University School of Law, where she teaches Negotiation.
Her mediation approach reflects an understanding of how litigated cases actually resolve. Mediation is treated not as a conversation for its own sake, but as a decision-making process shaped by legal risk, fiduciary obligations, and the practical realities facing counsel and their clients.
Colleen is experienced in matters involving high conflict, entrenched positions, and long-standing family or business relationships. Colleen focuses on preparation, structure, and careful management of both legal and non-legal dynamics. She works deliberately to create a process that allows parties to assess risk candidly, evaluate options realistically, and move past impasse when resolution is possible.
Her role as a neutral is to support informed decision-making—not to advocate outcomes—while maintaining an environment in which difficult issues can be addressed productively.
Colleen mediates disputes involving:
- Trust and estate administration
- Fiduciary duty and beneficiary claims
- Family and closely held business conflicts
- Commercial and complex civil litigation
- Pre-suit, mid-litigation, and late-stage matters
Both in-person and virtual mediations are available statewide.
Education and Training
Juris Doctorate (JD), Creighton University (2008)
Master of Business Administration (MBA), Creighton University (2008)
After more than a decade of litigation practice, Colleen pursued advanced training in dispute resolution, including collaborative law, interest-based negotiation, and Insight Mediation.
She continues to engage in ongoing professional development to refine her approach to mediation in complex civil disputes, with particular attention to preparation, process design, and informed decision-making.
Professional Honors & Recognition
Colleen has received the following recognition:
- National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals (2023 - Present);
- Lawyer of the Year, North Carolina Lawyers Weekly (2020);
- North Carolina Lawyer Weekly’s Leaders in the Law (2020);
- Best Lawyers in America (2020, 2023, 2025);
- North Carolina Super Lawyers (2023, 2024);
- North Carolina Super Lawyers, Rising Star (2016–2018);
- Business North Carolina Legal Elite, Young Guns (2016–2018); and
- Chamber of Commerce Winston Under 40 Leadership Award (2017).
Colleen is humbled that these recognitions demonstrate how deeply she cares about doing her best, making an impact, and serving her clients.
2020 Lawyer of the Year
Professional & Community Leadership
Colleen believes that we are all called to lead, and that everyone has a unique leadership opportunity. Below is where Colleen dedicates (or has dedicated) her time to help lead organizations in service of their missions:
- NC Bar Association and Foundation, Board of Governors
- NC Bar Association, Dispute Resolution Section Council and CLE Committee Chair;
- North Carolina Civil Collaborative Law Association (NCCCLA), Vice President;
- Global Collaborative Law Council;
- BarCARES, Board of Directors;
- Forsyth County Bar Association;
- Triad Restorative Justice;
- Arts Council of Winston-Salem & Forsyth County, Advisory Council;
- Chamber of Commerce Winston < 40, Advisory Board;
- North Carolina Association of Defense Attorneys, Young Lawyers Division, Chair;
- Forsyth County Women Attorneys Association, President;
- Forsyth Humane Society, Board of Directors, Chair; and
- Chief Justice Joseph Branch Inn of Court.
Those in italics represent leadership opportunities or activities that impacted Colleen dramatically as a young lawyer. While she is no longer active in those roles for the italicized organizations, Colleen remains supportive of them and grateful for their trust in her.
