Help centre / Desk / Packs
Bill a matter
Billing picks up the time you’ve recorded on a matter and anything you’ve paid out for the client. You choose what goes on each bill, check it, and issue it as a PDF on your letterhead.
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Set your numbers and rates
Go to Settings › Bills and rates
An admin builds the Bill numbers from pieces, like INV, the year and a four-digit number, and chooses whether they Start again from 1 each year. Payment reference is what clients put on a bank transfer. Under VAT, turn off VAT registered if your firm isn’t, or fill in the VAT rate, VAT number and Tax point. Then fill in Payment due after, How to pay and how you Usually send bills by.
Under Hourly rates, set the rate for Anyone without a grade, press Add a grade for each grade you charge, and choose Who is on which grade. Press Save when you’re done.
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Design your bills
Go to Settings › Bill templates
Press New template. Under Look, pick a layout, what to Call it, the Letterhead, fonts, Text size and Accent colour; the preview beside it shows one of your recent bills as it will look. Wording holds the text Above the lines and At the foot, and Email the message the bill goes with. Under Used for, choose the work streams it’s for, or make it the default. Press Save.
Your first template becomes the default. A matter uses the template for its work stream, and the default otherwise.
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Say how the matter is charged
Go to Matters
Open the matter and choose Billing. Under How it’s charged, pick Hourly, at the rates, A fixed fee or Hourly, up to a cap, and press Save.
Under Rates on this matter you can agree a different rate for a grade. Leave one empty for your usual rate.
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Start a bill
Under Waiting to be billed, tick the time and disbursements to include and press Start a bill.
To add something you paid out, fill in Date paid, the Amount before VAT, What it was for and the VAT under Disbursements, then press Add disbursement.
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Check the draft
Change any amount, untick a line to leave it off, add a fee, and write What the bill is for. Pick a different Template if this bill needs one, and turn on Outside the scope of UK VAT for a client abroad. Press Save, then Preview the PDF to see it as the client will.
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Issue and send it
Press Issue and choose the day it’s Dated. Turn on By email, By post or In the client portal; each is filled in from the client and the matter, and you can change anything before it goes. Press Issue and send. It takes the next bill number, and every time it goes out is listed under Sent on the bill.
Press Send on an issued bill to send it again another way, or Download the PDF to send it yourself.
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Record a payment
When the client pays, fill in Received, the Amount and How it came in under Record a payment, and press Record payment.
From the same bill you can Issue credit note to take something off, or Send reminder to email the client with the bill attached.
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See what’s owed
Go to Bills
Owed lists every bill still to be paid, and Drafts the ones not yet issued. Choose the days and download bills, payments or credit notes as CSV for your accounts.
If something goes wrong
Nothing shows under Waiting to be billed. Only chargeable time and disbursements not on another bill show there. Check the time was recorded as Chargeable on this matter.
You need to change a bill that’s been issued. An issued bill can’t change. Issue a credit note against it, then start a new bill.
Still stuck? Write to [email protected] and we'll get back to you.