Law Firm Accounting and Bookkeeping: Tips and Best Practices

law firm accountingAre you hoping to get your law firm’s accounting in check? Or maybe you’re starting a law firm and want to get off on the right foot?

But you’re a lawyer, not an accountant. And while you learned the ins and outs of the legal system in law school, they didn’t teach you about accounting and bookkeeping.

Regardless of the size of your law firm — even if you’re a solopreneur — it’s important to know accounting and bookkeeping basics. By learning the fundamentals of accounting, you can make sure your firm is compliant with ethics rules while finding ways to optimize your cash flow.

That’s why we’ve put together everything you need to know about law firm accounting and bookkeeping.

In this comprehensive guide, you’ll learn:

  • The importance of accounting and bookkeeping
  • How to hire the right professional for your firm
  • Important accounting terms
  • Why you need to organize your finances from day one
  • Legal accounting best practices
  • A step-by-step guide to setting up your accounting and bookkeeping

Let’s begin.



Law firm accounting vs. bookkeeping: What’s the difference?

First, let’s differentiate between accounting and bookkeeping — two terms that are often used interchangeably but really shouldn’t be.

accounting vs bookkeeping for law firms

A legal accountant and bookkeeper will work towards the same goal — they both want to keep your law firm financially healthy and built for the future. But the way they go about it is different, doing different tasks for the good of your law firm.


Bookkeeping

Bookkeeping is an administrative task that comes before any accounting takes place.

Legal bookkeepers manage your finances on a transaction-by-transaction level while ensuring the books are balanced. They take count of every transaction the firm makes, watching what money comes in and goes out.

Without a trusted bookkeeper for attorneys, a legal accountant won’t have any data work off of.


Accounting

Legal accountants look at the bigger picture, using the data your bookkeeper provides to determine how your firm can improve its financial health.

When you hire an accountant, you’re getting a professional that can take financial data, analyze it, and use it to make the best decisions for your business.

To do this, legal accountants capture expenses, provide financial forecasting, and prepare financial statements.


How to hire the right legal accountant and bookkeeper

Even if you master the basic principles of legal accounting, you’re still not an accountant or bookkeeper at the end of the day.

Knowing the fundamentals will enable you to be aware of your overall financial health, but trained accountants can still provide peace of mind and offer invaluable help.

You should budget for an accountant and bookkeeper to assist you with managing your firm’s finances and ensuring you’re compliant with ethics regulations.


What legal bookkeepers do

Two core tasks of a legal bookkeeper include data entry and bank reconciliation.

It’s largely administrative in nature, with duties including:

  • Recording financial transactions and balancing books
  • Cross-referencing books against source documents to confirm accuracy
  • Reporting on the businesses financial health
  • Creating and sending invoices
  • Managing payroll

How to hire the right legal bookkeeper

While not necessary, we recommend working with a bookkeeper who has experience working with law firms.

They’ll be more familiar with the ins and outs of law firm accounting, including the rules and regulations that could get you into trouble.

Ask around to see if other attorneys have a recommendation, or ask your State Bar for referrals. A bookkeeper should be willing to chat for free.


When you get them on the phone, ask questions like:

hire legal bookkeeper

Ultimately, you want to determine whether they have legal bookkeeping experience, whether they’re familiar with the regulations that could get you into trouble, and if they’re familiar with your software and workflow.


What legal accountants do

If a bookkeeper performs day-to-day tasks like data entry, a legal accountant looks at the big picture. They collect, analyze, and use financial information to plan for the future. With a legal accountant, you can be certain that your firm is compliant and is set to grow.

Duties include:

  • Capturing expenses
  • Financial forecasting and strategy
  • Preparing financial statements
  • Tax planning and compliance
  • Managing payroll
  • Client trust accounting

How to hire the right legal accountant

It would be best if you chose your legal accountant for their experience working with law firms, specifically those in your practice area and jurisdiction.

There are a couple of things you can ask to pick the right candidate:

hire legal accountant


Legal accounting glossary

While you don’t need to familiarize yourself with an accounting encyclopedia, it will pay off to learn some common terms. You’ll run into them often, and knowing the basics will help you stay in the know.

Here are a couple of definitions we think are worth memorizing.


Interest on Lawyers Trust Account (IOLTA)

When a lawyer holds onto a client’s money, they store it in a trust account.

But if the amount is small, a lawyer will pool together many of these lesser amounts and store them in an IOLTA.

what is an IOLTA

Before the IOLTA, lawyers would store this money in a non-interest-bearing checking account, as they are not allowed to benefit financially from storing a client’s money.

In 1981, this money started being stored in an IOLTA, which is an interest-bearing account.

The difference is, the interest earned in a lawyers’ trust account is directed to the state IOLTA board to be used toward advancing legal services and non-profits.


Double-entry accounting

A fundamental concept in accounting and bookkeeping, double-entry accounting states that all financial transactions have equal and opposite effects in two different accounts.

It satisfies the equation:

double entry accounting equation

You’re familiar with the meaning of debit and credit. In this system, all transactions are categorized as one or the other.

If you have a debit in one account, it follows that there will be a credit in another account. The goal is for all debits to equal the sum of all credits.

The balance sheet will contain assets, liabilities, and equity. Whenever there’s a change in one category, there should be a corresponding and equal change in another in order to keep the sheet balanced.

Why do you need to know this?

Being familiar with this concept gives you an understanding of how a balance sheet should look and can help safeguard against errors.

Check out this video to learn more:


Trust accounting

Trust accounting can be boiled down into one simple rule:

It’s not your money.

You store client funds in a trust (like retainers, settlement fees, court fees) that’s separate from your law firm’s operating bank account.

You’re responsible for recording the receipt and disbursement of these funds and posting the transactions to the ledger accounts of clients.

At its core, you must always know who’s entitled to the funds in your trust account and give it to that person.


Three-way reconciliation

Every lawyer that manages trust accounts should know what three-way reconciliation means.

You’re required to do this every 30 to 60 days depending on your state — be sure to check your state’s rules.

The goal is to check and verify your financial data. Most lawyers do so with the help of law firm accounting software.

The three things to verify are:

  • Bank account reconciliation: Compare what you think your balance should be with the bank’s version. Take note of any discrepancies.
  • Trust account reconciliation: Make sure you know who every dollar in your trust account belongs to.
  • Client trust ledger: Check your client trust ledger to make sure your account is accurate.

Chart of accounts

A chart of accounts (COA) is a list of all the financial accounts in the general ledger of your law firm.

At a glance, the COA should communicate all the financial transactions that your firm engaged in during a specific period. It’s broken down into categories and contains a name and description for ease of use.

Your COA will look different depending on your jurisdiction, law firm’s size, and practice area, but will always have these categories.

  • Assets
  • Liabilities
  • Owner’s equity
  • Revenue
  • Expenses

Make sure your trust account and/or IOLTA are included in your COA.


Why it’s important to organize your law firm’s accounting and bookkeeping

As a business owner, you know you should keep your accounting and bookkeeping in check.

But do you know why you should care about legal accounting? Or why it’s important?

If you want your firm to be financially healthy and thrive well into the future, you need to pay attention to your finances.

Putting time and effort into your accounting and bookkeeping will help you keep track of what money is coming in, how you’re spending it, and who it belongs to. It’ll keep you organized, ensuring you meet all of your financial obligations to your clients, your firm, your employees, and more.

Here are some reasons why accounting is key to your firm’s success.


You want your law firm to grow

You’re a lawyer first and foremost, but when you start your own law firm, you’re also a business. And for your business to grow, you need to focus on building systems and processes that keep your business healthy — that includes your finances.

Legal accounting will help your firm in many ways:

  • Enables you to keep track of what money is coming in and going out and from where
  • It lets you analyze your financial information so you can make data-driven decisions in the future
  • It saves time and money when it comes to making financial decisions
  • Can keep your trust accounts organized, helping you stay out of legal trouble
  • You’ll be less likely to miss out on revenue due to accounting or time-tracking errors

You’ll also identify what areas of your firm (practice areas, types of clients, etc.) are most profitable. This way, you can focus on working with the kinds of clients that bring in the most money.


You want to stay compliant

As a business owner, you’re required to keep your law firm compliant. You must follow the ethics regulations governing law firms in your area.

These rules and regulations change with every jurisdiction, so it’s a good idea to become familiar with what’s expected of you before jumping in.

With that said, there are some basic regulations that you’ll want to abide by regardless of where you’re practicing.

The American Bar Association (ABA) outlines many rules that you want to know. One, in particular, is Rule 1.15: Safekeeping Property.

Rule 1.15 outlines responsibilities regarding trust accounts, recordkeeping, and keeping clients in the loop regarding their funds and property.

rule 1.15 for lawyers
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You want to pay attention to the ABA’s rules, as not doing so could lead to some severe consequences.

Violating compliance regulations, whether intentionally or not, can lead to:

  • Penalties
  • Suspended license
  • Disbarment

The specific punishment will vary depending on your jurisdiction and the severity of the violation.


You want to know where your money is going

Whether you’re a solopreneur or run a firm with a hundred lawyers, knowing where every dollar is going will help you make better decisions for the firm’s health.

And with proper legal accounting and bookkeeping, it couldn’t be easier to get a big-picture overview at a glance.

Many law firms use legal accounting software, which often comes with reports and other tools to assist you with planning for the future.

Here’s an example of a report:

example financial report
(Image Source)

You’ll be able to visualize what you’re spending money on and what’s bringing in revenue, so you can pinpoint what’s working and what isn’t.

This data lets you pick and choose the best clients to work with, identify what expenses you have that might not be worth it, and make sure you handle client money appropriately.

With that said, knowing how to manage your money is also a reputation builder. Clients (and employees) talk, and if your finances are in shambles due to negligence, that could spell disaster for your credibility.

Keeping your firm professional in all matters goes a long way toward attracting new clients and high-quality employees.


Legal accounting best practices

If you’re just starting your firm, you’re in luck. It’s easier to start your legal accounting strong than to fix sloppy accounting done in the past.

These best practices all come back to one idea — staying organized.

And if you follow these guidelines, you’ll be well on your way to healthy finances and a successful year.


Set and stick to a budget

Every business needs to have a clear budget.

While new business owners may want to run their firm in a relaxed way and not set any budget, we don’t advise it.

A budget lets you:

law firm budget

Businesses are complex, and you may need to set a budget for different categories like marketing, technology, etc. With money flowing in so many different directions, it’s easy to lose track.

Your budget is a vital tool for keeping you in control of expenditure and making sure you’re not overspending.

Here are a few tips to get started with your budget:

  • Start by making a list of your mandatory expenses, like licenses, fees, rent, utilities, etc.
  • Set realistic business and personal goals. How much money do you want your firm to make month by month? How many vacations will you take? Will you hire contractors?
  • Use software like Uptime Practice to track billable hours, expenditures, and to keep your financial records in check.

Keep an eye on trust accounting

If you’re going to make an accounting error, it’ll likely be with your trust and IOLTA accounts.

These are funds you must keep separate from your firm’s operating funds. And without proper care, it’s easy to slip up and make a dangerous error.

These accounts are tricky to manage. There are very specific rules regarding what you can and can’t do with them, and these rules vary depending on your jurisdiction.

Law schools offer little to no training on how to manage these accounts. So, many lawyers go into the field without knowing the best practice surrounding trust accounts and how to manage them.

In our opinion, this is an oversight, as mismanaging these accounts can lead to serious consequences, even disbarment.

To set you up for success, you should:

trust accounting tips


Stay on top of your accounting

Accounting is all about analyzing your financial data. If your data isn’t kept up to date, then your legal accountant won’t be able to do their job as effectively.

It’s crucial to collect and organize your financial data regularly, not just at the end of the year.

Your legal bookkeeper will be able to keep accurate records and review and update your books on a weekly or monthly basis. With that information, you can better understand your firm’s financial health and plan for the coming months.


Use financial reporting to optimize your finances

Following the above three best practices allows you to optimize your finances.

With organized financial data, you can better identify opportunities to reduce your overhead, earn more money, and plan for the future.


A step-by-step guide to mastering accounting for lawyers

You know why you need to prioritize law firm accounting, and you’re aware of best practices. But how do you turn theory into practice? What steps do you need to take to set yourself up for success?

While you didn’t get into law to practice accounting, putting in the work at the beginning will make it easier to file your taxes each year. Plus, you’ll save yourself the headache of dealing with accounting issues, and you’ll always have accurate financial statements available.

Plus, if you want to outsource to accountants or legal bookkeepers, having a solid foundation will make it 10x easier.

With that said, here are the steps we recommend you follow, whether you’re a small or large firm.


Hire a Certified Professional Accountant (CPA) and Bookkeeper

We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again. You’re a lawyer, not an accountant.

If you want your business to thrive, you need to work with a CPA from the getgo.

We’ll dive more into the specifics of why you need a CPA later on in this piece, but trust us when we say hiring one will make your life much easier.


Open a business bank account

Every business requires a business bank account, law firms included. But the right account (and right bank, for that matter) will depend on where you’re located and how you like to bank.

Ask yourself (or better yet, the bank) these questions when you compare options:

  • What kind of fees will they charge you?
  • Do they offer business savings accounts and credit cards? What about a business line of credit?
  • Does the bank offer trust accounts, like an IOLTA?
  • Can you designate separate users in the online banking options?
  • Do they offer security and fraud protection?

Open a checking, savings, and IOLTA account

After selecting your bank, you want to open the necessary accounts. Those are your business checking, savings, and IOLTA account.

law firm bank accounts

Your checking account is self-explanatory — its primary purpose is managing business revenue.

You should also consider a savings account, despite interest rates often being low. Having cash in your savings account can improve your chances of being approved for loans and other lines of credit in the future.


Get a business credit card to improve your business’s credit rating

Your business operates as its own entity with its own credit rating. To boost that rating, you’ll need a business credit card.

We don’t recommend building your business off the back of your credit card. The interest rates are high, limits are often lower than other forms of credit, and they’re easily mismanaged.

But not using one at all is a huge mistake.

If you’re confident that you can manage a business credit card properly (that is, pay off the total in each month), it’s an excellent tool to grow your business.

A business credit card can:

  • Increase your business’s credit rating so you can access more credit in the future.
  • Earn you travel points, rebates, or cash-back
  • Provide additional fraud protection and warranty on some purchases
  • Help you keep your business expenditure organized

Understand your trust account (IOLTA)

Law firms are expected to have a separate but essential trust account, typically called an IOLTA.

Here’s how that money is typically handled.

how an IOLTA works
(Image Source)

IOLTAs are a beast of their own. They have their own rules and regulations that vary depending on your jurisdiction. If you mismanage this account, you could face severe consequences, including disbarment.

Most banks will help you open an IOLTA. Just be sure to verify your exact responsibilities with the State Bar Association and/or a professional accountant.

Here are some tips to help you manage your trust account properly:


Don’t borrow money from your IOLTA

You should never, ever borrow money from your IOLTA before you’ve earned those fees.

Many lawyers do this to solve problems like inadequate cash flow to deal with unexpected expenses. It’s easy to tell yourself that you’ll pay those fees back in time, but don’t do it.

It’s an easy way to get disbarred.

Instead, employ good accounting and budgeting practices, so you don’t need to dip into these fees in the first place.


Never commingle funds, and keep your accounts separate

Law school doesn’t teach lawyers anything about accounting, including how to manage their IOLTA. Many attorneys aren’t familiar with the rules governing these accounts and will unknowingly break these rules.

You cannot use your IOLTA to pay for any business expenses. To do so, you’d first need to transfer that money into your business account.

We’ve seen firms using these accounts to hide assets or as a savings account. The reality is that there is no scenario where it’s okay to use your IOLTA in this way.


Do not charge clients for service fees

You should only ever charge your clients fees directly related to their account.

But sometimes, it can be tricky to keep track of what fees are what, mainly if you accept payments through credit card. Credit card payments incur their own fees that are hard to track.

Do your due diligence and make sure every dollar going into the trust account is supposed to be there.


Don’t record trust deposit as income

A trust deposit is not income. It doesn’t belong to you, and if you claim it as such, you could face the consequences from regulators and have a more challenging tax season. Your accountant will hate you for it.


Keep detailed records

The key to good accounting is keeping detailed records of every single transition coming in or going out of your IOLTA.

Don’t forget to:

  • Write your client’s reference number on their trust account checks
  • Keep a separate ledger for each client
  • Keep track of all records

Be ready to perform a three-way trust reconciliation

When you have a trust account, you’re required (by the State Bar) to perform a three-way trust reconciliation every 30 to 90 days.

You must do so in case the State Bar asks to see your records.

It’s similar to two-way reconciliation, where you compare your bank account balance to your company’s books to make sure it matches.

But there are three components instead of two:

  • The leger of the entire trust account
  • The sum of the individual client ledgers
  • The trust bank statement

3 way reconciliation for law firms

These balances should all match each other. If they don’t, you need to go over every single transaction to see where the error lies.


Separate your personal and business finances

We’ve said it again and again, but never, ever mix your personal and your business finances.

You should never:

  • Pay for business expenses with your personal bank card
  • Transfer money from your business account to your personal account

It’s not as dire as comingling your business and trust accounts, but it’s a slippery slope toward unorganized accounting.

Some consequences of mixing your personal and business finances include:


You lose track of money

If you make purchases for your business on your personal account, you can easily lose track and forget all about them. When tax season comes around, you could forget to claim it and miss out on those deductions.

Plus, the more time and effort your accountant has to put into organizing your transactions, the more you pay them.


You lose legal protection

When you incorporate your business, you essentially separate yourself from the business entity. It’s called the “corporate veil,” and it protects business owners and their personal assets from legal action taken against the company.

corporate veil lawyers
(Image Source)

If you commingle your personal and business funds, you’re “piercing the veil,” and courts will ignore the legal protection that comes with incorporating.


You overcomplicate your accounting

Keeping all of your business expenses in your business account makes it way easier for your accountant to sort through transactions come tax season.

If they have to dig through your personal account to find the odd business transaction, you’re giving them extra unnecessary work and will be charged for it.


Choose an accounting method

You can choose one of two accounting methods for your law firm: cash accounting or accrual accounting.

cash vs accrual accounting
(Image Source)

The accounting method you choose should be in place when your firm files its first tax return. It affects everything, including cash flow, bookkeeping, and tax filing. Your CPA will guide on toward the right method for you.

Let’s break down each method.


Cash accounting

Most firms use cash accounting as it’s a simpler method.

Basically, cash accounting does not recognize accounts receivable or accounts payable. Instead, revenue is recorded when cash is received, and expenses when they’re paid. Only when the money comes in or goes out is it recognized.

It’s either to manage as the money is either in the bank or not in the bank.

Cash accounting also gives you an easier way to see how much cash your business has at a glance. Simply look at your bank balance and you’ll know exactly what the situation is.

Lastly, transactions are not recorded until you receive the money, so it’s not taxed until it’s actually in the bank.

To sum it up, the benefits of cash accounting are:

  • Easier to manage your cash flow, as you can see your current financial situation at a glance
  • Lets you defer taxable income to decrease your tax burden
  • Gives you more flexibility for end of year tax planning

Accrual accounting

Opposite of cash accounting, accrual accounting records revenues the money they’re earned (likewise with expenses), not when the money hits your bank account.

If you sent your client an invoice, that is immediately counted as revenue if you don’t receive the money for weeks.

Accrual accounting gives you an idea of what income and expenses you have during a period of time, but doesn’t give a good picture of your actual cash flow.

That’s why accrual accounting necessitates you track accounts receivable and accounts payable on your balance sheet.

To sum it up, the benefits of accrual accounting are:

  • Better for larger firms that experience rapid changes in revenue
  • Allows you to make better financial decisions as it’s more accurate

Develop a bookkeeping system

Accountants rely on bookkeepers to keep accurate and timely financial statements. Whether you do the bookkeeping yourself or outsource it to a professional, it’s a crucial task.

If you don’t keep your books up-to-date, you’ll need to play catch up at the end of the year.

A bookkeeper creates financial statements for your accountant to use to file your taxes, provides suggestions on improving your firm’s financial health, and more.

Your bookkeeping options are:

  • Outsource your bookkeeping: Our recommended choice is to outsource your bookkeeping. It frees up time for you to work on other parts of your business and saves you a ton of stress.
  • Do it yourself: You can also take a stab at doing it yourself. Using simple accounting software, you can manage your books. If you’re just starting out, this may be a suitable option.
  • Hire an in-house bookkeeper: Large firms with many employees and clients could justify the expense of a full-time bookkeeper.

Keep thorough records

If you own a business, you need to get good at recordkeeping. Your bookkeeper, accountant, and the IRS will thank you for holding onto documents proving your income, credits, and deductions.

You’ll need to hold onto just about everything, including:

  • Invoices
  • Bills
  • Receipts
  • Band and credit card statements
  • Proof of payments
  • Previous tax returns
  • Financial statements
  • Case time records
  • Time summary reports that are sorted by client and attorney
  • A list of cases in progress
  • W2 and 1099 forms

That’s just the tip of the iceberg. There may be more (or fewer) documents to track depending on your firm.

Anything that proves you’ve earned income, any deduction you claim, or a credit should be kept.

And they need to be kept for a while. Check out Bench’s guide to recordkeeping to see record retention periods.


What else you should track

There are other types of deductions you need to keep track of that incur while doing business.

These deductions will vary depending on your law firm and practice, but include:

  • Home office expenses
  • Meals and entertainment (if you take a client out for lunch, let’s say)
  • Business travel
  • Business gifts
  • Vehicle-related expenses
  • Conferences, seminars, training courses
  • Library fees
  • Subscriptions to professional publications or software

Take a look at this more comprehensive graphic put together by Bench.

law firm tax deductions
(Image Source)

Figure out how you’ll get paid

The next step is to determine how your law firm is going to receive money from clients.

Most law firms accept electronic payments, like debit and credit. The more methods of payment you have, the higher the odds are of a client working with you.

But every payment provider has a different fee structure (for example, credit card payments often come with a fee) so look into that beforehand.


Find a law firm-specific merchant processor

It’s recommended to find a merchant processor that works mainly with law firms to avoid breaking certain trust accounting rules.

Uptime Practice can help you streamline your merchant processing, automated invoicing, and even your payroll, all from the cloud.


Set up payroll

If you hire employees, you need to set up payroll.

Some things to keep in mind:

  • Understand whether your workers are contractors or employees
  • Research your employment law/employment tax obligations, which vary by state

5 law firm accounting obstacles to take note of

Accounting is tricky, even more so when it’s law firm accounting. A lot can fly under the radar, and before you know it, you could find yourself in a heap of trouble.

Here are five common law firm accounting obstacles and mistakes you should be aware of so you can avoid them.


Client trust accounting

Trust accounting (including IOLTAs) isn’t a part of standard business accounting. Because it’s an industry-specific account, it’s a common area to make mistakes.

Not all accountants are familiar with the rules and regulations governing these accounts, nor do they know that the rules change with each jurisdiction.

And law schools don’t really go into how to manage these accounts properly, so we see a lot of lawyers going in blind.

Trust accounting errors carry some serious consequences, including penalties, suspension, or disbarment.

Some errors we see often are:

client trust accounting errors

Remember that your trust account is your client’s money, not yours. Never touch that money for business expenses, not even once.

Thankfully, there are a lot of tools available to help you manage your trust accounts, so you don’t have to go at it alone.


Differentiating income from revenue

Not all income is revenue — this is a distinction that needs to be made or you could have to deal with inaccurate bookkeeping. And with one error comes many more, so it’s crucial to keep things organized.

All legal matters come with incurred costs. That is, you spend money to handle a client case, doing things like hiring experts.

When an invoice is paid, you should first deduct a portion to pay for those incurred costs. What’s left behind is your actual revenue.


Data entry errors

Everyone makes mistakes, including lawyers (and bookkeepers, and accountants).

Whenever you manually enter data into the books, you leave room for errors like a duplicated entry or a wrong number.

Data entry errors lead to wasted time, as you comb through records to figure out what the error is, as well as billing complications and compliance violations in the worst cases.


Understanding where money is coming from (and where it’s going)

Did you know that, on average, lawyers don’t collect on 12% of the hours they bill?

lawyers collect on bills

There are many reasons for this, one of which is poor accounting practices. Inadequately tracking your billable hours and mismanaging your invoices can cause you to lose track of what money is owed, and what’s going out.

When you don’t collect funds that you’re owed, you miss out on revenue and are essentially working for free. And when you’re missing out on 12% of your billable hours, that’s 4.8 hours in a standard 40-hour workweek. It adds up quickly.

Your firm needs to keep track of your invoices so you know what money is owed (and who you owe money to) to avoid this problem. Good recordkeeping is the key to success.

But how do you get clients to pay their invoices on time?

  • Give them more ways to pay, including with credit cards
  • Bill clients through email
  • Make it as easy as possible for clients to pay

Thinking you can do everything without professional help

You can’t do everything on your own, no matter how capable you are.

We recommend you reach out to a professional, like a legal accountant or bookkeeper, to assist with your business’ accounting. These are trained professionals who can keep you on track, ensure you’re always compliant and find ways to optimize your finances for future success.

After all, you’d want them to hire you for legal advice. It only makes sense to hire them for all things accounting.


Bettering your law firm’s financial health with accounting

You now have all of the information and tools needed to get your law firm’s accounting where it ought to be.

With the knowledge you’ve gained, you’re well on your way to better financial health. The hope is that, by knowing where your money is coming and going, you can spend more wisely and capitalize on valuable opportunities.

And you don’t have to do it alone. We recommend you hire a legal bookkeeper and accountant to help keep you and your firm on track.