Caryn was born and raised outside Buffalo, New York. Caryn’s first love and passions are reading and writing, which naturally led to a career in law. She attended the State University of New York at Geneseo, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree with Honors in Philosophy and English. From Geneseo, she moved South for warmer weather and attended Washington and Lee School of Law in Lexington, Virginia, graduating cum laude in 2002. During law school, Caryn was a member of the Editorial Board of the Washington and Lee Law Review.
Having visited her aunt and uncle in Virginia Beach during her childhood, Hampton Roads was a natural choice after law school. Caryn obtained a clerkship with the Norfolk Circuit Court and spent her first year of practice learning the ropes of the courthouse. Caryn then worked for a small firm in Suffolk practicing residential real estate law, before spending over 10 years handling trusts & estate, business, and real estate cases in Norfolk and Virginia Beach. Most recently, Caryn gained hands-on experience in trust administration as a trust officer for a local investment bank.
Caryn is now the Wills, Trusts & Estates attorney at Parks Zeigler, assisting our clients with Wills, Trusts, Powers of Attorneys, Estate Administration, Probate Matters, and Guardianships. She also represents business owners and businesses, helping entrepreneurs form new businesses, assisting existing businesses with transactions, contracts, leases, and general guidance, as well as helping business owners with succession planning.
Caryn is a past president of the Norfolk & Portsmouth Bar Association and a member of the Virginia Beach Bar Association. She also serves as a Director and Treasurer of the Norfolk & Portsmouth Bar Association Foundation, which generally supports projects that enhance the image of and build trust in the legal system and provides scholarships for high school and law students. Caryn is also currently the Treasurer of the Hampton Roads Estate Planning Council.
Caryn is AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell. She received the designation of Legal Elite by Virginia Business Magazine in 2019. She is a past Rising Star in the Business/Corporate category, 2011 – 2015. She received the Walter E. Hoffman Community Service Award from the Norfolk & Portsmouth Bar Association and is a 2011 graduate of LEAD Hampton Roads, a signature program of the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce to focus leaders on the key issues that face Hampton Roads and its position in the state, the nation, and the global economy
Outside of her practice of law, Caryn enjoys spending time with her husband, Marc, on long walks on the beach with their two yellow labs and boating when time and weather allows.