Intuit QuickBooks is a well-known accounting software platform that’s used for a variety of business tasks, including legal accounting and timekeeping. While this can be a helpful tool for your firm, it will only add to your workload if it doesn’t have features to support and streamline your workflows.
Is QuickBooks for law firms the right solution? Let’s take a deeper look at this software and alternative options to elevate your firm’s tech stack.
Law Firm Accounting Software
What Is QuickBooks?
QuickBooks is a billing and accounting software from Intuit that’s used by small and mid-sized businesses, including law firms. There are two versions of this software: QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Desktop. Depending on the version you choose, you can get features like automated invoicing, expense tracking, and payroll tax management.
How Do Law Firms Use QuickBooks?
Though QuickBooks was not designed specifically for law firms, it does have a lot of features that law firms use. Still, it needs to be integrated with other cloud-based management platforms to cover all your law firm’s needs.
Some of the ways law firms use QuickBooks include:
- Creating automated invoice approvals and reminders based on custom rules
- Setting up reminders for clients to pay invoices on time
- Tracking billable hours by client or case
- Generating reports
Features of the Best Legal Accounting Software
There are plenty of options for legal accounting software on the market, but they’re not created equal. Here are some features to look for:
Time Tracking
Legal accounting and billing software should be able to accurately track billable hours and support LEDES e-billing practices. A comprehensive platform can elevate your timekeeping with automated timers that work on any synced device, tracking for billable and non-billable time, and the ability to record multiple time entries on one screen.
Billing and Invoicing
The billing and invoicing process can be one of the biggest hurdles to getting paid. Legal practice management software should have the ability to create, print, or email branded invoices in a matter of minutes. Everything should be customizable, including your flat rate or percentage discounts, currency, payment terms, and late fees.
Expense Tracking
Your law firm expenses can add up quickly. Expense tracking captures every transaction to ensure that you’re always on top of your law firm’s expenses — even from your smartphone with a mobile app. You can also customize expenses and code them for better organization.
Online Payments
Legal clients expect convenient payment options, even for legal services. Online payment portals like Bill4Time Payments make accepting and processing payments simple and straightforward. It’s 100% compliant with IOLTA, ABA, and state bar guidelines as well, ensuring that you’re prioritizing the client experience while staying compliant.
Integrations
Your legal practice management software should have integrations to bring together your entire tech stack in one centralized platform. Document management, email, calendaring, and storage ensure that all of your disparate software systems — including the important details they hold — are available on your dashboard.
Bill4Time also integrates with QuickBooks, so you can easily import data from your Bill4Time account into the desktop or online version of QuickBooks to check outstanding balances, credits and debits, pending projects, and balance adjustments.
Integrate Accounting Software with Bill4Time
QuickBooks is one of the most popular accounting software solutions for all businesses, but it’s limited to billing and accounting metrics. Combined with a comprehensive and fully integrated solution like Bill4Time leverages the power of QuickBooks with the law-specific features of a legal practice management platform to help your firm grow and profit.
Ready to get started with Bill4Time? Schedule a demo today!
Leave a Reply