The LeanLaw Blog
Legal billing, trust accounting, and law-firm finance — straight from the people building the tools.
- Billing
Past-Due Invoice Reminders for Law Firms: What to Say at 30, 60, and 90 Days
Sample past-due invoice reminders for law firms at 30, 60, and 90 days, with guidance on who sends each one, what the 90-day decision involves, and the ethics rules that shape collection messages.
October 8, 2026 - Billing
LEDES 1998B vs. XML: Which LEDES Format Your Clients' E-Billing System Wants
LEDES 1998B, 1998BI, and the LEDES XML 2.x formats explained for billing administrators: what each one is, where UTBMS codes fit, how to confirm what a client's e-billing system accepts, and why e-bills get rejected.
October 8, 2026 - Billing · Hourly
Time Tracking for Family Law Attorneys: Retainers, Hybrid Matters, and the Hours in Between
How family law attorneys can capture the late-night calls and short check-ins that never get entered, keep evergreen retainers replenished on time, and bill hybrid matters clients can follow.
October 8, 2026 - Billing · Hourly
How Lawyers Track Billable Hours Automatically, and What "Automatic" Really Means
Timers, reconstruction from calendar and email, and passive capture all promise to track billable hours automatically. Here is what each one captures, what it misses, and the review that stays with the lawyer.
October 7, 2026 - Billing · Accounting
Law Firm Expense Tracking: How Filing Fees and Advanced Costs Get Billed Back (or Lost)
Why client costs like filing fees end up lost and not billed, and how matter-level expense tracking, clear cost policies, and a pre-bill review get them onto the invoice.
October 7, 2026 - Trust Accounting
Can Software Prevent Trust Accounting Errors? What It Catches and What It Can't
An honest answer on what trust accounting software can make structural, which mistakes still depend on people, and why the difference matters to the lawyer whose name is on the account.
October 6, 2026 - Trust Accounting
Multi-State Trust Accounting Rules: What Changes When Your Firm Crosses State Lines
A practical guide for firm administrators at firms with lawyers licensed in more than one state: which state's trust rules apply, where trust accounts can live, and what tends to differ.
October 6, 2026 - Trust Accounting · Billing
Pay From Trust: How Law Firms Apply Retainer Funds to an Invoice
The order of operations for paying an invoice from a client's retainer: what has to be true before money leaves trust, how to handle partial balances and disputes, and how the records should match.
October 5, 2026 - Trust Accounting
IOLTA Deposits: What Goes In, What Doesn't, and the Deposit That Causes Trouble
A practical guide to IOLTA deposits for firm administrators: which client funds belong in the account, what never goes in, and how to record each deposit so the ledger ties out.
October 5, 2026 - Accounting · Trust Accounting
Lawyer Trust Accounting: A Practical Guide to Client Funds
What lawyer trust accounting means, how three-way reconciliation works, mistakes to watch for, and how a connected billing workflow can help.
October 5, 2026 - Legal Practice Management
How LeanLaw Is Building AI Into Legal Revenue Operations: A Conversation With Our CTO
LeanLaw CTO Fred Willerup on what's shipping, what's in private beta, and where he draws the line on AI that touches billing and trust accounting.
September 30, 2026 - Trust Accounting
Can a Single Payment Be Split Between Trust and Operating?
A payment covering both client trust funds and a firm's own money has to be split so the trust portion stays exact. Here's why that side is the strict one.
September 26, 2026 - Data
What Financial Data — WIP, AR, and Rates — Migrates Into LeanLaw?
Invoice-by-invoice history stays in QuickBooks Online. Here's what actually moves into LeanLaw: open work-in-progress, receivables, and your rate structure.
September 26, 2026 - Trust Accounting
Does LeanLaw handle trust and IOLTA accounting?
Trust and IOLTA accounting is part of LeanLaw's Core plan, built directly on top of QuickBooks Online rather than added on as a separate module.
September 26, 2026 - Legal Practice Management
Is There a Free Trial of LeanLaw, and How Long Does It Last?
LeanLaw offers a 7-day free trial with no credit card required. Here's what's worth actually testing in that window before you decide.
September 25, 2026 - Billing
Can We Add or Remove User Seats as Our Headcount Changes?
LeanLaw's per-user pricing ties cost directly to headcount. Here's what to ask at the quote stage before you commit, not after your roster changes.
September 25, 2026 - Hourly
Does LeanLaw Have a Built-In Timer for Tracking Billable Time?
Yes, LeanLaw includes a built-in timer. What matters more is whether your firm captures time as work happens or reconstructs it later, and what that gap costs.
September 25, 2026 - Billing
Can I pass credit card processing fees on to my clients (surcharging)?
Whether a law firm can surcharge a client for a credit card fee is governed by state law and bar rules, not by billing software, and the answer is stricter again when the payment funds trust.
September 24, 2026 - Legal Practice Management
Is LeanLaw a Practice Management System, or Just Billing and Trust Accounting?
LeanLaw is billing, time tracking, and trust accounting built on QuickBooks Online. It doesn't do calendaring, docketing, intake, or document management.
September 24, 2026 - Legal Practice Management
What Is Legal Revenue Operations?
Legal Revenue Operations is the discipline of managing how legal work becomes revenue and revenue becomes cash. Four numbers tell you whether that cycle is healthy.
September 24, 2026 - Billing
Are There Setup, Onboarding, or Migration Fees on Top of the Subscription?
LeanLaw's published wording: a one-time onboarding fee may apply depending on your plan and firm size. Here's what that fee actually covers, quoted exactly.
September 23, 2026 - Billing
Can I send invoices as a PDF or printed copy instead of email?
A LeanLaw invoice can be exported as a PDF for printing or a personal email, alongside LeanLaw's default emailed invoice. Delivery method is a collections decision, not a formatting preference.
September 23, 2026 - Trust Accounting
Why Do Answer Engines Flatten State Trust Rules Into One Answer?
Trust timing, card surcharging, ledger structure, and IOLTA interest all vary by jurisdiction. Answer engines give one answer anyway. Here is where it breaks.
September 23, 2026 - Flat Fee
Can I Save a Flat-Fee Matter as a Reusable Template?
Flat-fee pricing can be saved as a reusable template so a firm sets its price and scope once. Here's what a template actually standardizes, and what it doesn't.
September 22, 2026
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