Best Practices for Improving Law Firm’s Accounts Receivable Process

When busy practices don’t have an effective law firm accounts receivable management process, unpaid client bills can get out of control in a hurry. Automated law firm accounts receivables software is designed with your clients in mind. Clients receive the benefit of predictable invoicing and self-service. Friendly payment reminder email templates are available to take the stress out of collecting money.

Send Easy-to-Understand Invoices and Follow Up

But sometimes, after all that hard work, you send out the bill and get no response. Non-paying clients not only cut into your firm’s cash flow, but chasing every unpaid invoice creates even more work. Now that you’re on your way to automating firm accounts receivables, consider setting up your law firm’s chart of accounts.

Tedious Time Tracking

According to ABA Journal, one of the more common complaints against lawyers is a lack of client communication. Clients who feel ignored are less willing to pay your invoice and may feel law firm accounts receivable management inclined to take out their frustration in an online review. Perhaps the client did so in error, having not recognised the transaction and mistakenly deemed it to be fraudulent.

Avoid surprises. Instead, manage client expectations

The process of automated accounts receivable collections takes place via technological tools, such as accounts receivable automation software. MyCase billing and invoicing software, for example, improves the collections process by providing your firm with the following. Then, send these bills electronically using Clio’s legal billing software and secure client portal, ensuring they reach the intended recipient near-instantly. Fortunately, you can minimize your use of collection agencies and write-offs by re-engineering your process for collecting law firm receivables. You’ll simply need to adopt a few accounts receivable collections best practices, in return for an improved collection rate and stronger cash flow. Manual handling of payments is a thing of the past; innovative technologies and software are up and running to facilitate smooth transactions.

• If you’re looking to offer client-centric, secure payment options, then Clio Payments is just what you need.
• While larger firms have the resources necessary to chase down non-paying clients, solo and small firms are at the mercy of whether their clients decide to pay or not.
• Take note of what they say and reference it in following conversations.
• It starts from the moment a service is completed and an invoice is sent, all the way through to collecting payment and updating your financial records.

So, offering different payment options for your clients is appropriate. Relying only on cash or checks might incur unwanted delays in client payments. In such cases, providing alternate payment methods will prompt clients to repay. Clio Payments lets Clio Manage users offer a range of payment options, from online credit or debit card payments to digital wallet and pay-by-bank payments to instalment plans. It handles all trust-related transactions in compliance with rules and uses the payment industry’s most advanced security measures.

Modernizing Legal A/R Management With Digital Solutions

Unfortunately, too many firms struggle to optimize their accounts receivable processes, meaning valuable fee-earners spend too long chasing up overdue payments. Rocket Matter seamlessly integrates with various tools to enhance your AR management practices. Features like Rocket Matter Pay allow clients to make secure online payments with ease, ensuring quicker transactions and reducing the time spent on collections.

• But isn’t keeping track of these payments and reminders a bit tedious?
• Working with us will free you from the tedious accounting and bookkeeping tasks that are straining your time and resources.
• And when you do get paid, forgiving it will make you look like a hero.
• If multiple people are working on the matter, add additional details such as their name, title, and hourly rate specific to the services they performed.
• This can be particularly problematic for firms that rely on repeat business or referrals from satisfied clients.
• Ideally, you’d accept eCheck and credit card payments—so clients can choose to pay with cash or credit.

Best practices for implementing AR automation

Since automation makes invoicing more consistent and eliminates uncomfortable personal reminders, it takes the stress out of payment reminders and other client follow ups. So, if A/R management is so essential, why do many attorneys wait until the last minute to collect bills or let invoices go unpaid all together? Invest in comprehensive training programs for staff to help them become proficient in using your accounts receivable automation software. Ensure that your accounts receivable software complies with legal and regulatory requirements, including client confidentiality and data security standards. Solutions that aren’t specifically built for law professionals may not adhere to the legal industry’s regulations. Go one step further by providing Click-to-pay links or QR codes, meaning clients can pay instantaneously through Clio Payments.

• These effective law firm accounts receivable strategies can transform your financial landscape.
• Access your firm’s click-to-pay link by selecting New charge from the Online payments tab before clicking the Copy payment link.
• If a practice has limited or inflexible payment options that make it inconvenient or difficult for clients to pay, it can make the situation even worse.
• Using this technology will help you streamline tasks, reduce manual errors, and free up staff to focus on managing cases and clients.
• So, prepare to get paid for your services and grow your law firm with accounts receivable.
• This article explains how law firms can improve their accounts receivables process—specifically, how Clio Payments boosts efficiency and reduces manual effort to a minimum.
• Electronic invoices also help firms save costs, by eliminating time spent on preparing bills and reducing the use of paper and stamps.

You can track the effectiveness of your A/R improvements by monitoring your collection rate trends over time. By seamlessly connecting to your existing system, InvoiceSherpa removes all double entries and reduces the manual labor required from your team. Your entire accounts receivable flow can easily be outsourced without having to change your current processes or make any technology changes to your current system. If you’re looking to offer client-centric, secure payment options, then Clio Payments is just what you need.

• Instead, leading law firms around the country are increasingly turning to digital accounting and payment solutions to increase cash flow and boost productivity.
• In this article, we’ll explore strategies and best practices to enhance your law firm’s accounts receivable processes.
• By streamlining the invoicing process, offering convenient payment options, and implementing timely follow-ups on overdue accounts, firms can reduce their AR balance and improve liquidity.
• Non-paying clients can have disastrous effects on your productivity, realization rates, and firm cash flow.
• Manually preparing and sending invoices is both tedious and time consuming.
• On top of that, the agency will charge 25% to 50% of any funds recouped.

Second, you need to minimize the time you spend following up on late payments. Now, payment due dates can vary from firm to firm; if one sets 30 days, others are more lenient, extending the due date to 60 days. However, once this period lapses and the clients haven’t https://www.bookstime.com/ yet paid your fees, you gently remind them about the pending payment by sending a message or calling them up. But isn’t keeping track of these payments and reminders a bit tedious? That’s where efficient accounts receivable management works wonders for law firms.