Board of Directors
Tom Matarelli
Chapter President
Tom is has been part of ACEDS Central Texas since moving to Austin in 2021, and became Board President Spring of 2023. Tom is an eDiscovery executive in the legal technology and forensic accounting space. Tom has had leadership roles in both services and software, previously serving as Senior Vice President of Global Business Development at Reveal and recently lead the global advisory segment for Relativity, and service leadership at Alvarez and KPMG
Tom is a consultant at heart, bringing financial analysis, forensics, legal and technology leadership to help companies modernize their workflows and delivering first class legal services. Tom and his family are Texans at heart, loving every moment of their Austin experience.
Samantha Windham
Chapter Vice President and Marketing Director
Samantha Windham is a Senior Account Executive at Thomson Reuters, where she partners with corporate legal departments to optimize their operations through advanced legal technology, analytics, and workflow solutions. Samantha is proud to serve on the Board of Directors for the ACEDS Central Texas Chapter, where she contributes to community engagement, professional development programming, and the advancement of best practices in e‑discovery. She is committed to strengthening collaboration across the legal operations and e‑discovery communities throughout the region. Sam loves living and enjoying downtown Austin.
Jeff Hirvela
Chapter Vice President and Secretary
Jeff is long term Discovery profession who joined our ACEDS Board this spring. He is currently a senior Director for Epiq, a worldwide provider of legal and business services, serving law firms, corporations, financial institutions and government agencies. Jeff has a long track record of helping his clients streamline the administration of business operations, class action and mass tort, court reporting, eDiscovery, regulatory, compliance, restructuring, legal transformation, and bankruptcy matters. An avid ultra-marathon runner, Jeff is also a frequent speaker on mental and physical health and founder of a local health awareness podcast.
Zach Keshner
Chapter Vice President and Director of Education
Zach joined our Board this spring. He is an experienced leader in the eDiscovery and legal technology space, with over a decade of expertise in client success, project management, and eDiscovery managed services.
Currently serving as Program Director at Consilio, Zach oversees critical programs, driving efficiency and innovation while building strong client relationships. Throughout his career, Zach has held leadership roles at organizations such as Lineal and DISCO, where he managed complex client portfolios, led cross-functional teams, and delivered high-impact solutions in fast-paced environments. In addition, Zach serves as Treasurer and Board Member for ACEDS Central Texas Chapter, contributing to the advancement of industry standards and best practices. He is passionate about leveraging technology to solve legal challenges, creating value for clients, and cultivating high-performing teams that excel in delivering results.
Colin Whittington
Chapter Vice President & Co-Membership Director
Colin Whittington brings years of experience partnering with in-house and outside counsel teams to solve complex, data-driven challenges. His work centers on helping legal leaders make better decisions by turning data into clear, measurable business value.
With experience at both ediscovery software and alternative legal services providers (ALSPs), Colin’s deep understanding of the global legal landscape has allowed him to work with highly regulated and risk-sensitive clients across the world. He is known for his consultative approach – aligning client objectives with data-backed insights that improve efficiency, drive defensible outcomes, and support strategic transformation.
He is committed to helping peers across the industry grow their networks, knowledge bases, and chances to further add value to their respective teams. Outside of work, Colin can be found outside enjoying the greenspaces Austin has to offer. Golfing, gravel cycling, or just walking the trails around the lake are a few favorite activities.
Kelly Tryce
Chapter Vice President and Co-Membership Director
A native Austinite, Kelly began her tech career in cybersecurity sales with Forcepoint before entering the legal tech world by joining Relativity. Now an Academic Development Specialist, Kelly focuses on empowering the next generation of eDiscovery and legal tech professionals through education, program development, and community engagement. She remains an enthusiastic member of the Central Texas legal tech community and is excited to be getting more involved with a great organization like ACEDS as a board member. In her free time, she enjoys traveling and taking in the sights and sounds of Austin. Be sure to say hello!
Richard Sayles
Director at Large
Richard Sayles is a seasoned leader in legal technology with over a decade of experience bridging data, forensic analysis, and product development. He has supported attorneys with innovative data-driven solutions across diverse matters including false claims, class actions, privacy, and litigation.
Before founding Sapling Data, Richard led business programs, data analysis, and software development initiatives for cross-functional teams and organizations in multiple industries. Known for his creative problem-solving, strategic insight, and love of teamwork, he combines technical acumen with a strong understanding of business needs.
As Co-Founder, Richard shapes the product vision and oversees client services, ensuring solutions are both on-target and client-focused. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business from the McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin.
Jennifer Williams
Director at Large
Jennifer Williams is the Director of Practice Support & Office Services at Vinson & Elkins, LLP. Jennifer joined V&E in March 1999, originally as a member of the IT training and technical support team in Austin. She has been a part of the litigation and practice support group since 2004, and became the firm-wide director of the Practice Support Group in 2007. In 2008, she also became firm-wide director of Office Services. Jennifer directs all aspects of litigation support technology and electronic discovery for V&E. She works extensively with legal teams and clients, and provides both education and consultation (internally and externally) on all phases of electronic discovery and information governance. Jennifer has been a Certified E-Discovery Specialist through the ACEDS organization since 2017. She also provides oversight for reprographics and mail functions in the Office Services department firm-wide.
Laura Ewing-Pearle
Director at Large
Laura joined the ACEDS board this spring an brings a wealth of big-law experience to the team. Her resume lists many fantastic achievements in her twenty-something-year career, with many successes have been in leadership roles in industries ranging from tech to toys. She loves to travel and have worked with multiple software apps for several year, She has created strategic reviews, project roadmaps and quality control processes. She is a quick learner of almost anything extremely quickly (except nuclear fusion & winning fantasy baseball). Laura is a Manager, eDiscovery at Baker Botts in Austin.
John Addington
Director at Large
John Addington is a Corporate Ediscovery Advisor currently with Corning’s litigation department. Working in the ediscovery field for many years on the vendor, law firm and corporation sides have provided Mr. Addington a unique perspective and broad area of expertise. He takes the lead in introducing new technologies and processes to improve efficiencies, and reduce costs in the corporate arena.
Additionally, Mr. Addington testifies as a corporate representative on ediscovery and knowledge governance topics and often publishes and presents on these topics. He is a Certified Electronic Discovery Specialist and was on a past ACEDS committee that revised the certification criteria.
Previous to Corning, Mr. Addington worked at Dell, where he directly managed the ediscovery in Dell’s largest litigation matters. As a result, Mr. Addington was a regular recipient of the annual Michael Dell Champion Award in recognition of superior performance.
Matt McCartney
Director at Large - Founding President
Experienced client server and leader at a large professional services firm with strong professional skills in Legal Operations, Litigation Technology, Information Governance, Data Privacy, Cyber Security, Investigations, and Compliance, with a passion for building diverse high performing teams through education and mentoring.
Additionally, Mr. Addington testifies as a corporate representative on eDiscovery and knowledge governance topics and often publishes and presents on these topics. He is a Certified Electronic Discovery Specialist and was on a past ACEDS committee that revised the certification criteria.
Previous to Corning, Mr. Addington worked at Dell, where he directly managed the ediscovery in Dell’s largest litigation matters. As a result, Mr. Addington was a regular recipient of the annual Michael Dell Champion Award in recognition of superior performance.
John Addington
Director at Large
John Addington is a Corporate Ediscovery Advisor currently with Corning’s litigation department. Working in the ediscovery field for many years on the vendor, law firm and corporation sides have provided Mr. Addington a unique perspective and broad area of expertise. He takes the lead in introducing new technologies and processes to improve efficiencies, and reduce costs in the corporate arena.
Additionally, Mr. Addington testifies as a corporate representative on ediscovery and knowledge governance topics and often publishes and presents on these topics. He is a Certified Electronic Discovery Specialist and was on a past ACEDS committee that revised the certification criteria.
Previous to Corning, Mr. Addington worked at Dell, where he directly managed the ediscovery in Dell’s largest litigation matters. As a result, Mr. Addington was a regular recipient of the annual Michael Dell Champion Award in recognition of superior performance.
Matt McCartney
Director at Large - Founding President
Experienced client server and leader at a large professional services firm with strong professional skills in Legal Operations, Litigation Technology, Information Governance, Data Privacy, Cyber Security, Investigations, and Compliance, with a passion for building diverse high performing teams through education and mentoring.
Additionally, Mr. Addington testifies as a corporate representative on eDiscovery and knowledge governance topics and often publishes and presents on these topics. He is a Certified Electronic Discovery Specialist and was on a past ACEDS committee that revised the certification criteria.
Previous to Corning, Mr. Addington worked at Dell, where he directly managed the ediscovery in Dell’s largest litigation matters. As a result, Mr. Addington was a regular recipient of the annual Michael Dell Champion Award in recognition of superior performance.