Charles Peterson was the head of the international energy practice for the Pillsbury law firm. As of late 2018 he has taken a teaching assignment in Seoul, South Korea.

He started his career in nuclear energy when was interviewed by Admiral Rickover and selected to serve in nuclear submarines. He was sent to the University of California at Berkeley to study nuclear engineering. His first assignment after being certified by the Atomic Energy Commission as a senior reactor operator was at the Idaho National Reactor Test Station. Here he worked directly with Rickover in the development of the reactors that would power the first nuclear-powered submarines. He later became a shift supervisor at the Shippingport Atomic Power Station. His first assignment at sea was as the chief engineer of a Skipjack class, fast attack submarine that could cruise at 43 knots submerged. After four patrols in the Sea of Okhotsk, North Pacific and the Artic, including one that lasted for over eight months, he was assigned as the engineer to supervise the construction of the ballistic missile submarine, the USS Samuel Adams SSBN 620, and he later became the chief engineer for seven deterrent patrols in the Norwegian Sea and the Mediterranean. He returned to the United States to supervise the reconstruction of the Sam Houston SSBN 609 and sailed on her for 6 patrols.

After obtaining an M.B.A. at the Stanford Graduate School of Business in 1971 and a J.D. at the Stanford School of Law in 1973, he joined the General Electric Nuclear Power Division and in 1975 he became Department General Counsel for the Nuclear Fuel Department. In that capacity, he participated in the sale of nuclear fuel in the United States and 10 foreign countries. In 1979, he was appointed Division General Counsel of the General Electric Aircraft Equipment Division where he was involved in sales of aircraft equipment to the United States and foreign governments.

In 1983, Mr. Peterson joined Cogema, the French nuclear fuel company that became part of AREVA, as the first Executive Vice President of its US subsidiary. He later served as President of Nuexco during the period when Nuexco came to prominence as a leading international nuclear fuel trading company.

He has the noteworthy distinction of having led one of the top management teams that played a critical role in the development of the nuclear power program in the United Arab Emirates and being the lead negotiator for the purchase of the Barakah nuclear power plant, and was formally recognized for his work with a commendation from the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.

He acted as a legal advisor in connection with the introduction of the Little Willow NPP Project to MidAmerican Energy (Warren Buffet) and the negotiation of the Little Willow contract with KEPCO. Between 2014 and 2018, he assisted Saudi Arabia in its efforts to negotiate a 123 Agreement with the United States.

He has been recognized by the IAEA for his work in teaching young managers that are starting nuclear programs. He has also been recognized by the legal rating agency, Chambers Global for his legal work in the field of Energy: Nuclear-Regulatory & Litigation (2006-2017).