Who is a Law Firm Billing Specialist?
A billing specialist in a law firm is responsible for creating and issuing invoices to the clients, ensuring accuracy, conformity to firm standards, compliance with billing guidelines, etc. They are equally responsible – if not more – for collecting payments on those invoices after they are issued. These responsibilities are the direct result of the most important duty that lies upon billing specialists – debiting the fees and costs onto individual client matter records. Invoices are just the last step in their work, and the last step in the work of the law firm as a whole . Invoices, as unexpected as it may sound, happen relatively seldom in law firms – especially when compared to crediting costs, which the admin staff does on a daily basis. Invoicing is just the last step in the longer process of crediting the fees on client matters. This is why invoicing usually means exporting preexisting data from the practice management application as well as the timekeeping solution. In many cases, depending on the complexity of the matter, timekeeping and matter management applications are both used to produce the bill. This is why awarding and debiting professionals have historically been grouped together into the same category – billing specialists.
Essential Skills for Law Firm Billing Specialists
A stellar billing specialist for a law firm possesses a unique set of skills and qualifications. For example, due to the highly specific nature of the job, such professionals are often required to have prior experience working with attorneys, and billing lawyers in particular. In addition, due to the intense level of detail in invoicing clients, they also typically require at least some prior experience with accounting, as well as extensive training in software systems used for accounting, billing, and collections.
More than anything, though, a great billing specialist for a law firm must have an eye for detail. This is important for keeping accurate and accessible records, providing clear invoices, and ensuring that all professional services are recorded and billed at the necessary rate. Legal billing specialists are typically tasked with managing complex billing accounts that involve hundreds or thousands of lines of line items. Missing even a single charge can result in thousands of dollars in lost revenue for a firm.
Additionally, a billing specialist is often required to have a strong knowledge of both legal terminology and law firm billing guidelines, as it relates to invoicing and billing clients. In other words, a billing specialist isn’t just responsible for compiling invoices, billing rates, and payment plans, but also making sure that clients are being charged justly, and in accordance with the law.
Popular Law Firm Billing Software
Law firms use multiple different types of billing software to help with invoice processing, tracking accounts receivables, and dealing with accounts payables. While different firms have varying needs, there are a few software solutions that stand out above the rest.
QuickBooks 2019
This is one of the most popular accounting software platforms for small and mid-size law firms. QuickBooks has a lot of useful features that make it a valuable tool for billing specialists. QuickBooks Weekly Time Sheets make it easy for your billing specialist to keep track of the hours worked during the week for all employees. There are flexible billing options that will work for most law firms, including for those that bill by the hour and for those that operate on a contingency or retainer basis. Email statements are another big plus for integrating a billing system into your current office’s structure.
Bill4Time
This software is designed specifically for law firms, so payments and time tracking are very intuitive for attorneys and their support staff. The interface is focused on billing and invoicing with complete reports designed to help you recover costs. The biggest advantage of using Bill4Time for your billing software is the fact that it helps you improve cash flow, making sure you receive payments in a timely manner. Your office is also going to save money on administrative costs, such as handling and mailing invoices.
Clio
This is another software that was designed specifically for attorneys. Clio pairs nicely with your current practice management software, such as Outlook, Microsoft Office, and Google Apps. With the ability to take payments through big names like American Express, Visa, and Discover, you need not worry about your clients being able to pay with the credit card of their choice. Your billing specialist will increase his or her productivity with Clio as it is designed to take care of all the tedious administrative tasks that they typically handle. You will see faster payments while enhancing your trust accounting and payment collection procedures.
Practice Panther
This is another law-specific software that has many useful features to streamline your billing process. If you team your current practice management system with Practice Panther, you have a lot of great functionality available to help collect funds due. Reports are designed to help you understand your biggest areas of profitability, not just monitor your losses. By using Practice Panther, you are creating a seamless, worry-free process that only requires clients to sign off on their credit cards for payment.
Xero
Xero also pairs really well with your current practice management software. You will get an app for both Android and Apple, enabling you to access your account remotely any time of day or night. Xero is also hosted on the cloud, so you never have to worry about losing your client data or information from your accounting. There is even a fully featured mobile app specifically tied to the accounting software to make it easier for you to manage things on-the-go.
As you can see, law firms have many options when it comes to their billing software, but these are probably the most popular ones. Getting a demo of any specific software will help you understand how it works and what it is capable of.
Law Firm Billing Specialist Challenges
One of the most common challenges billing specialists face when working with legal billing is the complexity surrounding billable hours. While many people have a basic idea of what it is, some do not have an understanding of how the entire process works. As a result, it can be very difficult to understand the details of complex billable time. These complex billing structures are among the most common issues faced by legal billing specialists.
Another challenge in this line of work is ensuring that legal bills are accurate . While this may seem like a common-sense practice, mistakes can occur that result in a bill being higher or lower than it should be. Generally, these errors come from poor quality control standards and a lack of communication with attorneys and clients.
Billing specialists also face issues with clients. Often, clients will be willing to make exceptions for discounts or late payments, only for attorneys to later request full payment. This puts billing specialists in an uncomfortable position, forcing them to choose between pleasing their employers and providing top-notch customer service.
Law Firm Billing Best Practices
Ensuring accuracy is fundamental to the success of legal billing. Billing specialists should follow a few simple guidelines for checking their work before submitting it. Be on the lookout for errors such as duplicate entries, transposed numbers, and incorrect values. Use billing software to detect inconsistencies automatically.
The right technology can make all the difference for billing specialists. Efficient billing software helps to minimize costly errors, streamline processes, and maximize compliance. Consider software with features like clear invoice formatting, automated generation, and tracking.
Be sure to communicate regularly with legal teams. They should know which bills were sent, when, and how they were sent. Be proactive in addressing issues before they occur; for example, remind them of when retainer balances are running low.
Openness is key when it comes to billing concerns. This means being accessible to legal teams to answer questions, offering suggestions and guidance to help them avoid billing complications, and communicating budget information clearly.
The Role of Legal Billing in Law Firm Success
When a law firm maintains its accuracy in billing practices, it is more likely to sustain its client base. Clients are far more diligent about paying their bills on time than they were in the past. They don’t want to be overcharged, or even worse – surprised by a bill they didn’t anticipate.
In addition, lawyers need to be paid for their hard work on a consistent basis. You can’t work for free and still keep your firm afloat, so accurate and timely bills are key. Being in a constant state of billing conflict will not make you an asset to a client. It is prudent to set up a regular payment schedule , and stick to it.
As important as it is to issue accurate and timely bills, it is equally as important to obtain accurate information for those bills. A billing specialist will be able to enter all client billing into the system so that you can have confidence in the details of your invoices. A billing specialist will also adjust all fields throughout the billing process to ensure the final product presents a thorough representation of the work done for each particular client.
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