Our Attorneys

Christopher A. Desimone, Attorney at Law

Chris has prepared more than 3,000 Wills and Trusts. He devotes 100% of his law practice to estates and trusts, and is a member of WealthCounsel, a national organization of Estate Planning Attorneys that develops state-of-the-art estate planning techniques, documentation and processes. Chris completed advanced training in Trusts and Trustee Standards to become an Accredited Fiduciary at the Center for Fiduciary Studies, where he graduated valedictorian of his class. In 2006, he was voted by his peers as a Virginia Super Lawyer in Estate Planning & Probate, an honor only the top 5% of Virginia lawyers achieve. In 2008, Chris was profiled by Wealth Management Magazine as an Industry Leader in Estate Planning for the Southeastern United States.

Chris became a Certified Instructor of Estate Planning with the Roanoke Financial Services Institute and is a member of the Trusts and Estates Section of the Virginia State Bar. He was selected as Professor of Estate Planning at the Judge Advocate’s School where he was assigned to teach lawyers the various techniques of estate planning. Chris wrote a monthly column devoted to estate planning in two local publications, and was quoted in The Boston Globe in a front-page article addressing trusts and estates. He was selected by the National Business Institute to teach an educational program, Elder Law in Virginia: Legal and Financial Issues, to fellow attorneys for educational credit. Chris served as an AARP participating attorney for three years and as President of the Smith Mountain Lake Estate Planning Council.

Chris graduated from the University of Rochester, cum laude, and received his Juris Doctorate and MBA from the University of Buffalo. Chris was commissioned as an Officer in the U.S. Army and completed Airborne School to become a paratrooper. He then spent six years as a Judge Advocate in the Army JAG Corps that included duty as a trial lawyer and as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney. He possessed a Secret Security Clearance. Following active duty, Chris served as Headquarters Company Commander for a U.S. Army Reserve unit in Salem, Virginia. While in the Army, he won a Golden Gloves Boxing Competition in the welterweight novice division and received the IRS Commissioner’s Award for his work in creating and developing an IRS tax center. For his military service, Chris was awarded the Army Achievement Medal, two Meritorious Service Medals, and the National Defense Service Medal.

Chris has made several radio guest appearances on WWWR and WFNR talk radio; was a guest lecturer for Roanoke College; and a guest speaker on Blue Ridge Public Television and WDBJ Channel 7 to discuss cutting edge developments in estate planning. Chris is the founder of The Special Needs Symposium, and he received a Special Contribution Award in 2003 for serving families in our community that have loved ones with disabilities. He is married and his four children are 7th generation Virginians. He is active in a variety of community and charitable activities and has coached youth baseball, basketball, soccer and lacrosse. He and his daughter were Silver Medalists in the 2009 Commonwealth Games Canoe Adult/Child Tandem Division.

Ann McGee Green, Attorney at Law

Ann has been an attorney for more than 20 years and focuses her practice on the areas of elder law and estate planning, guardianship, estate and trust administration, Medicaid and Special Needs Planning. In January 2007, she was invited into the prestigious Special Needs Alliance, an organization comprised of America's leading Disability and Public Benefits lawyers. In the spring of 2009, she was named the best elder law attorney in Southwest Virginia in Ourhealth Magazine. In the summers of both 2008 and 2009, she was chosen by her peers to be listed for estate planning and probate in the 2008 and 2009 Virginia Super Lawyers publication, an honor given to only 5% of attorneys. Also in the summer of 2009, she was notified that she will be listed in the Best Lawyers in America (2010). In August 2008, she was quoted in two articles in the Roanoke Times about the challenges facing the elderly entitled "The Age of Uncertainty: The Costly Years" and "The Costly Years: Most Common Financial Myths" In November 2007 and again in November 2009, she is named in The Roanoker Magazine as one of the Roanoke Valley's best elder law attorneys.

Ann has been an instructor for Elder Law and Medicaid seminars for the National Business Institute and Half Moon Seminars. She has published a series of articles in Special Education Today on estate planning for the disabled (1997-98) and in September of 2008 published an article on transition planning in Exceptional Parent Magazine. She has been an instructor to other attorneys for the Virginia Continuing Legal Education Program of the Virginia Law Foundation in the areas of adult guardianship, Medicare Part D, ethics, elder law and estate planning. She was recently featured in an article in Prime Living Magazine that focused on elder law attorneys. Ann has been qualified as an accredited fiduciary at the Center for Fiduciary Studies.

Ann has led a variety of estate planning seminars on Estate Planning, Medicare Part D, Medicaid, Special Needs Trusts and Guardianship for organizations such as Senior Law Day, the League of Older Americans, the Special Needs Symposium, the State of Virginia Procurement Annual Meeting, the State of Virginia Department of General Services, Bedford Memorial Hospital, Wall Residences, Blue Ridge Independent Living Center, Modern Woodmen of America, General Electric, Virginia Baptist Autism Association, Alzheimer's Association, Virginia Baptists, Care Connection for Children, and a wide variety of local churches and other community organizations.

Ann graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Virginia with a degree in Economics. After spending two years as a legal assistant in Washington D.C., she returned to the University of Virginia to complete law school in 1986. After graduation, she served five years as the Executive Director of an urban ministry in Richmond, Virginia. In 1991, she began her private legal practice.

Ann is a member of the Trusts and Estates and Elder Law Sections of the Virginia Bar Association. She was elected by her peers to serve as Secretary/Treasurer for the Salem/Roanoke Bar Association. She is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA), where she is a member of the Trust Special Interest Group, the Virginia Chapter of NAELA, and is a member of the Virginia State Bar, Trusts and Estates Section.

Ann is an active member at Bonsack Baptist Church, where her husband serves as Minister of Music. She served as past Director of the Blue Ridge Chapter of the Alzheimer Association Board of Directors. She recently finished a six year term on the Board of Directors of Good Samaritan Hospice.

Ryan L. Nuzzo, Attorney at Law

Ryan devotes 100% of his law practice to estates, trusts, and VA pension planning. Prior to joining Anderson, Desimone & Green, P.C., Ryan worked for a law firm in Wytheville and Radford, Virginia, where he handled complex family issues and civil matters. Ryan is a Charter Member of the Academy of Veterans Affairs Pension Planners, and has completed advanced training in the planning and filing of veteran pension benefits for veterans and their spouses. He has substantial courtroom experience, having managed hundreds of cases before judges throughout Southwest Virginia. He has served as guardian ad litem for children and for incapacitated persons, and helped parents with guardianship issues through community services boards.

Ryan grew up in Virginia and pursued his undergraduate and graduate studies exclusively in Southwest Virginia. Ryan graduated magna cum laude from the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) with a degree in Political Science, and also graduated as a Commonwealth Scholar from the University Honors program. He was honored with membership in the Phi Beta Kappa Society, the Golden Key International Honour Society, and the National Society of Collegiate Scholars. He then received his Juris Doctorate from the Appalachian School of Law. While attending the Appalachian School of Law, he served on the Executive Board of the Appalachian Journal of Law, the school’s legal periodical which restricted membership to the top percentage of the class.

Ryan is a member of the Trusts and Estates Section of the Virginia State Bar. He is a member of the Montgomery County Bar Association, the New River Valley Senior Networking Group, and the New River Valley Estate Planning Council.

Ryan is an avid supporter of the Boy Scouts of America and Girl Scouts of America programs. He achieved the rank of Eagle Scout, and he is also a member of the National Eagle Scouts Association.

Ryan is married and lives with his wife in the New River Valley. His wife is pursuing her doctorate in veterinary medicine at the Virginia Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine located at Virginia Tech.

Suzan Anderson, Attorney at Law

Suzan graduated from the State University of New York, Empire State College, with a degree in Marriage and Family Counseling. She received a Masters degree in Higher Educational Administration and then her Juris Doctorate from Syracuse University in 1985. Suzan is admitted to practice before all courts in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the state of New York.

Suzan has devoted her practice solely to the area of estate planning. She has gained a reputation as a dynamic and entertaining speaker, has spoken before numerous civic and private organizations and has presented public estate planning seminars since 1990.

As a member of a national organization of Estate Planning Attorneys, Suzan believes that planning is one of the most important things that families do for each other. As a trusted professional estate planner, she has helped make a difference in the lives of hundreds of families and individuals.