Real Estate Tax & Advisory Symposium

Nicole Campbell

Nicole Campbell has over eight years of experience in commercial real estate throughout Hampton Roads, specializing in office and industrial properties. She provides comprehensive representation, working with both tenants and landlords, as well as buyers and sellers across all facets of transactions.

Brett Axelrod

For more than 25 years, Brett has focused her practice on the representation of Chapter 11 debtors and unsecured creditors’ committees and has worked on some of the largest bankruptcy cases in the state of Nevada.

Former Managing Partner of the firm’s Las Vegas office and a past Co-Chair of the firm’s nationwide Financial Restructuring & Bankruptcy Department, Brett has a broad range of experience in insolvency and corporate restructuring matters and concentrates in the areas of business reorganization and bankruptcy, asset sales and acquisitions and gaming.

She represents clients in the gaming, real estate and mining industries across the country, and has built a strong reputation for her strategic handling of complex, high-profile bankruptcy cases. Brett has represented a variety of businesses as well as secured creditors in Chapter 11 bankruptcy filings and purchasers in 363 sales.

Alice Haase

Alice Haase co-founded CastroHaase PLLC in June 2012 where she focuses her practice on real property tax assessments and land use matters. She represents a broad range of clients, including local and national developers and entities – commercial, retail, industrial and residential – as well as nonprofit organizations. Ms. Haase’s real property valuation and land use practices have taken her into numerous Virginia jurisdictions and the District of Columbia.
 
As counsel to property owners of office buildings, hotels, apartments, and undeveloped land, Ms. Haase has successfully prosecuted reductions in tax assessments at the department and board levels as well as at mediation pursuant to litigation cases. Ms. Haase has also secured approvals for land entitlements, including rezonings, special use permits, special exceptions, subdivisions and site plans for a wide variety of projects, including hotels, residential subdivisions, and offices. Among her recent cases are the approvals of special exceptions to permit a non-profit organization to locate its headquarters to the historic Evermay estate and operate a social impact incubator at the historic Halcyon House, both in Washington, DC.

Prior to her law career, Ms. Haase’s extensive real estate experience included real estate appraising in the state of Tennessee and Commonwealth of Virginia and brokerage, also in Virginia. That specialized background and knowledge provides her clients with a unique, combined practical and legal approach that has proved effective, persuasive and extremely valuable, particularly in her tax appeal and condemnation practice areas.

In the past, Ms. Haase was at Holland & Knight where she served as a co-coordinator of Holland & Knight’s Women’s Initiative program. Active in the fight to combat cancer, in October 2010, she introduced the inaugural program for the firm’s “Crusade Against Cancer,” which featured a broadcast presentation by a world-renowned cancer researcher to every firm office.

Ms. Haase is a member of CREW DC where she was elected to the Board of Directors in 2015. For several years she has served on various committees in support of the annual Lombardi Gala, to benefit the Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center in Washington, DC. In the past she also was the chair of the Capital Breast Care Center’s Advisory Committee in Washington, DC, serving women who might not otherwise have access to care.
 

Before CastroHaase PLLC and Holland & Knight, Ms. Haase worked at Walsh, Colucci, Lubeley and Walsh in Virginia where her practice also focused on land use and zoning, land use litigation, tax appeals, condemnation and general real estate matters.

Ashley Sullivan

Ashley Sullivan is a Partner at MSC, where she oversees firmwide operational strategy and ensures consistency and quality across all cost segregation and fixed asset service lines. She works closely with practice leaders to refine workflows, strengthen quality control processes, and align technical standards with evolving industry guidance.

With more than 20 years of experience, Sullivan has supported the execution and review of over 10,000 engineering based studies across diverse property types.

Her expertise spans:
• Engineering driven cost segregation studies
• Repair vs. capitalization analyses under IRC §§162 and 263(a)
• Section 1031 exchange asset classification
• Fixed asset lifecycle and depreciation method optimization
• Energy related incentives, including §179D and §45L

In addition to her client and technical work, Sullivan is a frequent national speaker at major accounting and industry events. She has presented at the AICPA National Tax Conference, the AICPA Construction & Real Estate Conference, and numerous state CPA society conferences, including Arizona, Virginia, and Tidewater. Her speaking topics range from cost segregation, Section 1031 exchanges, and short term rental considerations to §179D/§45L energy incentives and women’s leadership in technical practice areas.

Sullivan currently serves as President of the American Society of Cost Segregation Professionals (ASCSP) for the 2025–2027 term. A long time CCSP member, she has held multiple leadership positions within ASCSP, including Secretary, Vice President, Director, and Chair of the Conference Committee. In these roles, she helped strengthen technical standards, expand educational programming, and enhance audit ready documentation practices for the profession.

Earlier in her career, she contributed to the development of The Practical Guide to Cost Segregation (CCH/Wolters Kluwer) and supported the creation of early software tools that standardized building component mapping and modernized engineering workflows. She holds a B.S. in Business Administration from Averett University and remains active in professional organizations at both the state and national levels.

David Fabian

Dave has over 20 years of experience with MSC, and he has been personally involved in over 15,000 Cost Segregation Studies on all types of projects including apartment complexes, automobile dealerships, manufacturing plants, office buildings, retail centers, and many more including his personal favorite: golf courses. Dave has traveled throughout the country to analyze property, prepare cost segregation studies, meet with clients, and make presentations.

As Managing Partner, Dave’s responsibilities include managing all cost segregation projects and all engineers and accountants on staff. He initiated and developed the firm’s comprehensive in-house cost segregation training program and ensures team members are informed of all current developments in the areas of depreciation, tax, and engineering. He ensures that all reports are of the highest quality, all parties involved in the study (client’s in-house accountant, CPA firm, project managers and engineers) are updated on the progress of the study as it is in process, and the results are communicated to appropriate parties in a timely fashion.

Prior to joining MSC, Dave had 12 years’ experience in public accounting and private industry. He received his B.S. in Accounting from Canisius College. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants. Dave and The MSC’ management team were proud to present the CREATE webinar series to provide tax updates and identify opportunities for CPA’s and business owners across the country. In addition, Dave has presented education sessions to numerous CPA firms around the country, as well as a speaker for the AICPA, National Association of Industrial and Office Properties (NAIOP), New England Inns and Resorts Association (NEIRA), Massachusetts Society of CPA’s, and many other State Society groups including, New York, New Hampshire, Maine, Florida, Arizona, & More. In addition to professional involvement, Dave is active in the community.

Tarra Chen

Tarra Chen, Esq. is an Exchange Director at Legal 1031 Exchange Services, LLC, serving clients throughout the Mid-Atlantic region, including Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Virginia. She provides expert guidance and education on IRC §1031 tax-deferred exchanges to investors, attorneys, real estate professionals, and other advisors.

Tarra has dedicated her legal career to real estate, previously working with internationally recognized law firms on a wide range of complex transactions. Her experience includes zoning and title compliance, as well as the financing of multimillion-dollar real estate portfolios—giving her a comprehensive understanding of the legal and strategic considerations involved in 1031 exchanges.

An active member of the New York and Virginia Bar, Tarra brings professionalism, precision, and deep legal insight to every exchange. She earned her B.A., cum laude, from New York University and her J.D. from Brooklyn Law School.