If you run a law firm, you’ve probably heard of, or use, Clio. It’s a user-friendly cloud program for trust and billing that I have extensive experience working with. I am a certified consultant in this software, and attended the 2018 Clio Cloud Conference in New Orleans that hosted more than 1,500 lawyers. I was blown away by the enthusiasm on display, and was so proud to learn that Clio is in fact a Canadian company!
The topic we’ll be tackling today in our first entry of The Legal Bookkeeping Diaries is Trust Account data entry. This is something that lawyers and law clerks must do on a daily basis, and form the foundation of Law Society of Ontario (LSO) Reports.
In preparation for an LSO Spot Audit, we normally start from analyzing these daily data entries, looking for any mistakes or discrepancies.
What we watch out for:
- Who receives funds and who pays them: A proper name is required here! It shouldn’t just say “client,” and should never be left blank.
- How funds are received: detail here is absolutely essential (ex. EFT, Cash, Wire, Cheque, Bank Draft,…)
- Purpose of the Transaction: ex. Retainer Re: Fee, Retainer Re: Disbursement
- Date of the Transaction: date the payment was sent or received
Our Tips and Tricks:
Write in the method of payment in the Reference Section and the Memo Section – this makes it easier to generate an original Trust Journal later on in the accounting process!
I hope this helped! Don’t hesitate to reach out with any further questions.
