Here’s an easy-to-follow guide on how to create and send an invoice using LeanLaw. You can watch our helpful video or just follow the steps in this article.
Step-by-Step Guide: Creating and Sending Invoices
Creating the Invoice Draft
Step 1: Access the "Ready to Bill" section of LeanLaw:
Open LeanLaw and click on the billing tab.
In this section, you'll see a detailed list of all tracked hours, fixed fees, and expenses for each client and matter that haven't been billed yet.
Step 2: Select items for the Invoice:
Check the box next to each item you want to include in your invoice.
If you only want specific items on your invoice, hover your mouse over an item and click the checkbox next to it.
If you need to include non-billable items or contingency matters, make sure the right filters are selected.
Useful Tip:
Use filters effectively! If you already know the matter, time period, practice area, client, or user you're billing for, set the filters to narrow your search and make the process faster.
Step 3: Create the Draft:
After selecting the entries you want on the invoice, you have a few options to create a draft:
Quick-Create a Single Draft:
If you want to make a draft quickly, hover your mouse over an item and click the green lightning bolt icon or on the top right on the "Create Draft Invoices" green button. This creates a draft right away.
Click "Ok" to confirm, and then look for a green message at the bottom right of your screen that tells you it's done.
Detailed Draft Creation:
If you want to take a closer look at each item before making a draft, click the grey arrow next to an entry. This lets you see more details and make changes to each item.
Click on a time entry to adjust or edit it for the invoice.
When everything looks good, hit the green "Prepare Invoice" button to complete your draft.
Editing the Invoice Draft
Step 1: Access Draft Invoices:
Click on "Drafts" on the left-hand menu of the Billing page to locate your invoice draft.
Once you locate the drafted invoice, click on it to review.
Step 2: Make Changes to Draft Invoices:
You can edit the following fields on this screen:
Invoice #
LeanLaw and QuickBooks can communicate to automatically assign an invoice number based on the sequence you already have in QuickBooks Online. Leave this space blank for automatic ID assignment.
If you prefer to assign your own invoice IDs, click on the text box to edit.
Invoice Date:
Select what date the invoice will have.
Tip:
Choose the last day of the billing period as the invoice date. This aligns your "Billed Revenue" with the month the work was performed, ensuring accurate financial reporting.
Bill to:
This will auto-populate the address details you set up for your client when you created the client.
To edit this field, click on the text box.
Memo:
Click on the Memo text box to update trust balance details or add extra notes.
You can also include custom fields, total amounts for the matter, a summary of hours billed, and the current trust balance.
Once you're happy with the memo field, click "Apply" to go back to the draft invoice.
Invoice Details:
Click on a line item to modify it.
To change an item from billable to non-billable, select the checkbox next to the line item and click "Make Non-Billable."
You can adjust write-downs, save the entry for a different invoice (sending it back to Ready to Bill), or change the assigned matter.
Use the plus sign to add a new time entry to the invoice.
Add Credits:
Click "Add Credit" at the bottom left of the draft to add a one-time credit.
For a percentage discount, calculate the total dollar value of the discount and enter it as a one-time credit.
Please Note: LeanLaw does not support recurring credits. For any adjustments to hourly rates for specific clients or matters, please make these changes directly on the matter page.
You can also use the Drafts page to select the invoices you'd like to download as either separate LEDES or as a single, combined LEDES file.
Step 3: Finalize the Changes to Draft Invoices
Once you are satisfied with your edits, click on "Save". To move the draft to the next stage in the process, you can select the Approve (or Approve & Submit to QuickBooks) option.
Approving the Invoice
If your firm needs to approve invoices before sending them to QuickBooks Online, click "Approve" in the left-hand menu. This lets you review and approve draft invoices that are ready but not yet finalized.
You can also use the Approved section to select the invoices you'd like to download as either separate LEDES or as a single, combined LEDES file.
Remember, if your Billing Workflow Settings have the approval step turned on, the invoice won't go to QuickBooks Online until you give the final okay.
To see your firm’s current billing procedures, head over to the Billing (Workflow/Fees) page found in your firm's Settings.
Finalizing the Invoice (Sending the Invoice to QuickBooks Online)
Managing Invoices:
In the "Manage Invoices" section on the left-hand menu, you'll find all invoices that have been sent to QuickBooks Online.
Remember, invoices created directly in QuickBooks Online won't show up on this page.
Emailing Invoices:
To email an invoice as a PDF attachment, click the email button next to the invoice. This will open the email customization options so you can prepare your message to your client.
You can also send emails in bulk by selecting the checkboxes next to each invoice, then at the bottom of the page, click on the dropdown arrow next to "Deliver," BS choose "Email." The invoice and any additional expense attachments will be included as PDFs automatically.
Reviewing and Editing Invoices:
To review an invoice in QuickBooks, click the three dots next to it and select "Open in QuickBooks."
If you need to make changes to an invoice, you can move it back to drafts. Just select the invoice, scroll to the bottom, and click on "Back to Draft."
Behind the Scenes: LeanLaw and QuickBooks Sync
When an invoice is created in LeanLaw and submitted to QuickBooks, LeanLaw will automatically record the transaction into the proper accounts (Revenue and Accounts Receivable) in QuickBooks.