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QuickBooks® Training Library: The KnOWLedge Base

Law Firms and QBO with Lynda Artesani & Sarah Prevost


Course
Quantity
For someone else
Lynda Artesani
Quantity
For someone else
Purchase for $74 or enter access code

Learn how to do trust accounting, use LeanLaw and Clio with QuickBooks Online, and track financial performance for law offices.

Law Firms and QBO Course Description

Bookkeeping for lawyers is a great niche, but it has its own set of “laws.” Clients’ retainers must be held in trust. Productivity is tracked by attorney. Expert witnesses must be paid. How do you use QuickBooks Online to track all that?


Trust Accounting is the workflow of setting aside your clients’ prepaid funds in a separate bank account to pay for the costs associated with their cases. Trust accounting isn’t just used by attorneys - you’ll also find it used in other industries including car dealerships, real estate companies, and travel agencies.


If a law firm's trust account is not managed properly, the attorney can be audited by the bar association or even worse - lose their license to practice.  Therefore, lawyers need to manage their records accurately, and it’s an essential skill set for bookkeepers.


Another consideration is software. A law office’s day-to-day operations are frequently managed using software solutions such as Clio and LeanLaw. The good news is that QBO integrates with these apps to create a streamlined end-to-end financial tracking system for compliance, business analysis, and tax reporting. We’ll look at the best practices for synchronizing your QuickBooks with Clio and LeanLaw.

Most firms also need to track cases and finances by partner. We’ll show you which QBO features make that possible!

You’ll learn about:

  • The basics of trust accounting
  • LeanLaw setup and best practices
  • Clio best practices
  • Connecting the software to QBO
  • Using Classes and Tags to track activity by attorney

 

Instructional Level

Intermediate to Advanced

Course Length

2 hours

Course Credits

Certificate of Completion

Field of Study

Accounting/Bookkeeping

Delivery Method

QAS/Self Study

Who should take this class?

  • Anyone that does bookkeeping for an attorney,
    or is looking to niche their firm to working exclusively with lawyers

Why pay full price? Sign up for a Royalwise OWLS Membership
and get this course and more for one low monthly price.
Silver membership pays for itself in just two courses per month!

 


Refunds & Cancellations

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Here is the course outline:

Download the Handout

Download your class handout here

Download the handout here

What Need to Know to Work with Law Firms

Law is a great niche for bookkeepers. Let's talk about some of the issues and terminology you'll need to know to be successful.

Introduction and Agenda
Biz View vs Accountant View
Nuances of bookkeeping for lawyers
Trust Accounting for Client Costs
Client Costs
Attorney Compensation Models
The Nuances of Legal Accounting

Legal Technology

There are many software options available to keep track of business activity in law firms. QuickBooks Online is great for the bookkeeping. LeanLaw tracks partner compensation. Clio helps manage the cases and clients.

Using QuickBooks Online for the Bookkeeping
LeanLaw: Manage Your Trust Billing and Compensation
LeanLaw: Setup
LeanLaw: Billing Workflow
LeanLaw: Reports
Clio: Legal Practice Management, Setup
Clio: Billing Workflow
Clio: Accounts
Clio: Dashboard and Communication
Clio: Reports
Legal Accounting Software

3-Way Bank Reconciliations & What's Next

The problem with Trust Accounting is that you need to make sure the Liabiility Accounts and Bank Accounts match. Here's how it works.

3-Way Bank Reconciliations
Final Tips
What's Next?

Quiz and CPE Credit

Take this quiz to demonstrate your mastery of the material. Pass the quiz with an 80% or higher to complete the Course, earn your Certificate, and win points!

Complete this survey for a certificate
How much did you learn?

Completion

The following certificates are awarded when the course is completed:

Royalwise CPE Certificate
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