You are ready to launch the Amicus Attorney Program and will. Legal Billing Software. From the Amicus Administrator Window - select Database>Backup.

Attorneys looking to keep time and bill clients need software that can work for them – enabling multiple attorney users to bill at different rates based on their matters and allow administrators to invoice clients, manage trust accounts, and receive payments. Many of the companies in the space have similar basic features. We spent the time to review six competitors in the space, seeing what they do better and worse than each other. But, when it comes down to it, every one discussed here has the following: 1.Create new clients 2.Create new matters (sometimes called “projects”) that are either billed hourly or flat-fee 3.Log time related to a matter 4.Create invoices related to a matter 5.Account for received payment (some, not all, of these actually allow you to receive payment online with a service like Paypal) 6.Assign users to particular matters and clients 7.Restrict user permissions as needed (e.g. Prevent users from billing clients, restrict users to see and bill certain matters only – though some are more robust than others) Practice Management Software vs. Timekeeping / Billing Software In the past we’ve including companies like,, and. You may be wondering what’s the difference between their “practice management software” compared to this “timekeeping and billing” software.

Generally, practice management software is more comprehensive. It includes things like organizing your matters and related correspondence and documents in addition to scheduling, task management, document creation and assembly. Oh, and on top of that these companies also do timekeeping and billing with trust accounting. But, some attorneys just want a way to keep time and bill clients without all the extra features that more comprehensive practice management software has.

And that’s fine. To each his or her own.

That’s why JurisPage wrote these articles, to help you look at timekeeping and billing software for your law firm and see what’s the best fit for you. Cloud-Based vs. Server-Based Timekeeping and Billing I took a look at six companies that stand out – Bill4Time, Ebillity, Freshbooks, Timeslips, PCLaw, and CosmoLex. Of these, PCLaw and Timeslips are the only services that are completely server-based; the rest have cloud-based solutions. What’s the big difference?

Server-based systems like Timeslips and PCLaw require that you install their software on a computer server that all users can access. With that setup, you may need an IT person to do the server setup and installation, also taking steps to make sure the server is secure. Let’s not forget that you’re a law firm with sensitive client information and the last thing you want is someone hacking into your server and stealing or deleting your user information because you didn’t know what you were doing or you hired someone unqualified.

It’s fairly well-known at this point that law firms are an looking to go after specific companies because law firms do not have the information security that their corporate clients do. With server-based software, you generally pay a one-time installation fee for each user license.

If your firm has 10 people, you pay for 10 user licenses. These licenses usually cost $800-$1,000 each, with some discounts for more high-volume orders. With cloud-based software, you pay per each user per each month, generally anywhere from $20-$40 per user per month. While you may feel some sense of “ownership” by having server-based software in that you only pay a one-time cost to get the software and install it as opposed to ongoing monthly fees, the cost savings with a server-based system are deceptive as there are hidden costs. Hiring an IT firm to create, install, set up, and secure a server can be expensive. Oh, and what happens when your software is out of its service warranty (usually 1 year, if you pay extra for it)?

Your software provider won’t take your calls unless you get an annual expensive service agreement. You may think that you’ll never need help with your software, but you absolutely will. Then, let’s not forget that the software you bought will be outdated next year when the newest software version comes out and the company stops offering security patches to your software. So, you have to buy the newest software version.

In short, the cost savings you think you’re getting from server-based timekeeping and billing software are likely nonexistent once all real costs are factored in. Generally, cloud-based services are the most scalable and easiest to get started.

Cloud-based services are secure (potentially more secure than server based) and they comply with all legal ethics rules when used properly (just make sure you have a good password!). Cloud-based timekeeping and billing services automatically update when new features are added and do not require an IT professional to come to your office to set up / maintain your system. Also, with their monthly fee, you get unlimited support. Because of this, and because of the experience I had while testing them, I would not recommend PCLaw or Timeslips, or any other server-based timekeeping and billing software for that matter, for law firms. The Best Timekeeping and Billing Software for Law Firms Of the timekeeping / billing software tested, the ones that stand out are Bill4Time, Ebillity, and Freshbooks. Has a very user-friendly interface and integrates with a lot of third-party applications you may or may not use in your practice day-to-day. But, Freshbooks is not attorney-centric.

It does not have trust accounting or ABA billing codes integrated (some lawyers want that). Bill4Time and Ebillity were built with lawyers in mind and have many advanced features you may want to take advantage of, providing for significant time savings over any competitor’s software.

In the next few weeks we’ll be sharing our reviews of Bill4Time, Ebillity, Freshbooks, Timeslips, PCLaw, and CosmoLex. Let us know your thoughts on timekeeping and billing software for attorneys. Great Article Andrew! I am a novice to the inner workings of technology that my colleagues and I can use for our firm, but I know that it is refreshing to see an article like this explaining practice management software VS. Speciality software.

Most articles I have come across seem to be promoting specialty apps and generic CRM like Microsoft Dynamics so I was starting to feel as if practice management software wouldn’t be the way to go, but the article made me realize that if I want ONE software with all the features my firm needs in one then I should get practice management software. I signed up for two free trials and plan to sign up for the ones you recommended, but I wanted to know if you were familiar with Practice Panther and Cosmolex and which do you prefer? Since comments are related to CosmoLex, I as CEO of the company would like to clarify couple of points. First, CosmoLex is NOT just a time&billing software. CosmoLex is a complete law firm practice management software and additionally includes fully integrated IOLTA accounting not included in any other cloud product listed here.

Very soon (by April 2015) we will also have fully integrated Operating Accounting also providing small law firms one tool for everything. Rick Kabra, Ph.D. CEO CosmoLex Cloud, LLC.

Pros: Program is easy to use. Has features fitted for its intended purpose. If it worked, I'd really like it Cons: simply put, it doesn't work half of the time. If you want to spend billable hours watching the status bar spin, and spin, and spin, this is the program for you!

If you enjoy sitting on hold for hours, waiting for support staff to answer, then finally tell you that there is a glitch in the system, but they'll have it up and running in no time, this is definitely the program you want. Conversely, if you want to work on a consistent basis with a program and works as hard as you do, better pass. Overall: It works great, on the rare occasions it actually works. Pros: I have used Amicus Online for several years for my small firm and it was an excellent program with a lot of features, especially for an online PM software. It has an evergreen retainer option, truly integrated email, good document assembly, unbilled time finder, unlimited custom fields, works with Lawpay, easy to use, nice interface. Document assembly, automated workflow, lots of reports.

Pretty much everything I want in a practice management software. Cons: Once Abacus purchased Amicus Online in June 2016 things began changing for the worse.

Now I have constant problems, at times it takes 3-4 attempts to do a simple time entry. Sometimes I can't add things to my calendar because when I try the hourglass just keeps spinning. Sometimes the action buttons disappear (for example the close and add button when adding a task) and I literally have to restart the entire program multiple times because I am stuck on the add task screen.

Today I can read my emails but when I try to respond to an email nothing happens. These are just a few of the issues I have had. These problems crop up regularly and randomly. When I call the help line I am told it must be my browser, computer, connection etc BUT I have changed locations, computers etc to test this theory when the problems are happening and there is no change so it is clearly the program.

If you look at the Abacus company website almost all seminars, updates, training is for the Abacus product line. I am looking very hard to find another online practice management program that has similar features. So far Practicepanther is the closest but the program reports section is not robust enough for me. Before Amicus Online was bought out I would recommend it to anyone, now I would recommend it to no one.

Overall: Before it was purchased by Abacus, Amicus Online was excellent and I had no complaints. For the past year the program is almost non-functional at times and it appears to be getting worse, not better. Pros: It is intuitive and easy to use. The interface is logical and pertinent to lawyers and law practice.

No special training or programming is necessary to use the system. Because it links to Outlook, all emails, contacts, etc. Are instantly synchronized with Outlook and smart phones. Cons: The word that best describes this software is SLOW. It operates by linking to Outlook, and you will frequently sit there watching the hourglass swirl waiting for the task to complete. Because the software is not a stand-alone product, it is limited in what it can do. It does not really integrate documents, and the only way to manage or track work flow is via Outlook tasks.

It keeps track of emails only so long as the email address is active with Microsoft Exchange - if you ever deactivate an email address, you lose access to all emails associated with that address. Abacus Law bought Amicus, and it seems that Abacus has little or no interest in maintaining much less improving this product. Overall: It kept track of emails for me for years. That is a monumental task, and I found the product very useful for this purpose. It creates invoices pretty easily.

Pros: Amicus Attorney Premium is a reliable product. Once it's up and running correctly, there are few bugs. It is a highly flexible program chock full of more options than anyone could ever use. I prefer to avoid the cloud, too much risk of privacy issues, so even though an in-house server is old school, I prefer it this way. MS Exchange sync which gets calendars and contacts to the cell phone is excellent since 2015, best it's been since the old days of synching to the Palm Pilot. While I am listing a number of cons below, this software is the center point of our practice. Cons: Since this software was purchased by Abacus Corp in 2016, the price has gone up 75% -- what a sticker shock!

IMHO, the tech support under the new owner is no better or worse. As for improvements to the product, the new owners seem to be focused only on selling their own add-on products --- the announcements tout how AA Premium now links to Abacus Product XYZ, but AA Premium has received any new features. They promised a cell phone app for remote access as part of the February update to AA 2017 and it still has not been released. They have added links to their add-on extra accounting and law products, but not updated any features of the core Amicus Attorney program. There is still no iPhone or Android app for remote access, one still has to use a browser on the cell phone to reach AmicusAnywhere. The process for writing SQL reports is complex! Also, the move from WordPerfect to Word (a necessary evil in today's world) meant losing the highly flexible document merge abilities of WordPerfect.

I've been with AA since 2001; if Abacus doesn't produce new features, however, I will look to move my office to another product that seems more modern even at the risk of going to a web-based product when my two-year contract expires. Pros: Ease of use for daily functions; time-keeping and seamless integration with PCLaw; calendar and to do features. Cons: 1) that a full featured cloud version is not yet available; and 2) that it does integrate fully with Worldox as a document manager, rather than the rather unhelpful document links within Amicus. Overall: I selected Amicus Attorney as my practice management software the day I opened my solo practice almost 17 years ago., and have never been disappointed. I had researched competing software, and realized that the Amicus interface was far superior.

Although I occasionally look at alternatives, my initial assessment remains the same, and I would choose Amicus Attorney if starting anew. Recommendations to other buyers: Commit from the beginning to using contacts and the telephone link so that you do not have to catch up later when you realize how useful it is. Comments: I had the desktop version 15 years ago and LOVED it. I recently reopened my practice and opted for the cloud version. PRO: moderately reliable. Customer service guy is nice and generally responsive.

CON: only moderately reliable and way to expensive for slow speed. Task and appointment integration is not what I need. No way to schedule tasks, other than for the day you want, not the hour you set aside to do them, unless you schedule an appointment. Cannot print the calendar, not the day, or week, or anything. NO print option for the calendar. In their defense, their marketing material does clearly say that if you want speed, then the desk top version is better for you.

OVERALL IMPRESSION: If I had to guess, I would say they are either using customers to beta test the product or they are reluctant to dedicate the server space needed to accommodate the demand. Painfully slow page change time, especially related to managing emails and doing email time entries. Composing an email is occasionally whacky, throwing me to the very bottom of the page, under the signature and privacy notice, every time I hit the return key for a new paragraph. Also, although the email screen has a Print feature, it returns only a blank page. I spend a lot of time waiting for the spinny thing to stop and my legal assistant is frequently asking me, 'Have you saved that?!' When I am composing a detailed email. Frequently cannot access the system, especially in the evening, such as now, when I am trying to work late to actually get something done.

Comments: Calendaring 'features' are awful. You cannot get a list of deadlines for a particular matter ordered by the date the deadline occurs (it instead orders it by the date the program is set to remind you about the deadline - totally illogical). It claims to offer customizeable reports via SQL reporting, but you'll have to pay someone to figure out how to do this (I have SQL experience and still was not able to figure out how to get a simple report of deadline in a particular matter, ordered by the deadline date). When viewing your calendar for the week, you cannot distinguish between appointments and tasks. Outlook integration is a joke.

You would think that Amicus's 'to-dos' would map to Outlook's tasks, and that Amicus's appointments would map to Outlook calendar. CompuLaw integration is clunky - there is a pause every time you want to use it, as it queries another database before you have even told it what event you want to calendar. And it does not automatically specify party names with the associated dates, making CompuLaw calendar entries even more confusing. Worse, everything gets added as a task, even if there's really nothing to be done in connection with the event (sometimes you just want to know when something from the other side is due but no action is required). Staff hate using it, and avoid it, often preferring to calendar things manually, and thereby negating any benefits associated with CompuLaw integration. It appears to have its own idea for how to manage legal workflow. However, there are no online tutorials.

To access any of the tutorials requires you to log out of the system and log in to a different tutorial implementation. The 'reminders' feature is an interesting idea (you see a task on your to-do list for days preceding its deadline) but ends up being useless because the user interface is so clunky that no attorney in my firm actually relies on this (we just have our staff tell us what it says). Because the synchronization is not effective, there is no real mobile access. To use program, you must access via computer that is physically in office.

Every time I start Amicus, the program changes my views in Outlook even though I do not have it set up to sychronize with Outlook. It tries to do too many things (law firm accounting, document management, calendaring, time entry, etc.) without doing any of them well. Comments: The graphics give the appearance that this product performs well. The calendar systems integrates with Outlook but the alarms go off every 5 minutes regardless of whether you changed the settings, tell it to snooze for 24 hours or that you will attend.

The Amicus Accounting program is so bad that it is no longer available for purchase. That is an example of this company's lack of integrity. Shortly after purchasing the accounting software it was discontinued. We ended up purchasing their integration with QuickBooks in order to get our billing out. Their 'integration' is difficult to maneuver. The Administrator program is inadequate.

Giving this product 1 star is far more than it deserves. Pros: Amicus has been bought by Abacus.

Cons: Amicus Attorney has constant problems that never seem to be fixed. Now that Abacus has bought Amicus, and is running the show, I am sure it will get better because Abacus products/representatives are topnotch professionals who actually care about putting a great product out for their customers, and genuinely care about their customers, and always go the extra mile for them. Overall: Because of the Senior Business Development Manager for Abacus, A.R., assigned to our account, our experiences with Amicus/Abacus are always positive. Is absolutely fantastic to work with, very knowledgeable, and able to get immediate results. On your staff will ensure your customers are always happy and satisfied.

Pros: Their support is fantastic. Very little wait time. The support people are courteous, knowledgeable. Cons: In many ways, the program is overwhelming for some of our staff. It takes a lot of time to train new staff members on the program. Also, there are many things that the program does that I haven't been able to use because it takes a lot of time to set up those things.

This is probably more of a problem with smaller firms that don't have staff who just handle equipment use. In addition, we're WordPerfect users. I feel that the program works slightly better with MS Word. Overall: I have a small 5 attorney firm.

With a large support staff. At any given time, we handle about 1,000 active files. Our practice is very paper intensive. We've tried to go paperless, but it doesn't quite work with out type of practice, so we still do things the old fashioned way. With file folders and legal pads. I've been an Amicus Attorney user for over 10 years. Prior to that, I tried and use several other 'name brand' case management systems.

Until about a year ago, we used the Amicus Small Firm program and it worked great. We switched to the Premier edition when we upgraded our server and all of our workstations.

The premier edition was more adaptable to our practice. First of all, it was faster, second, we liked the better document management and third, for a rather small increase in cost, we got more bells and whistles. There are at least a half dozen firms in my area that are now using Amicus because of my recommendation. The links with other programs like Outlook are seamless. One calendar entry in Amicus updates Outlook and my laptop and my phone. I have not seen another case management program that has a document assembly system for letters, pleadings, emails, faxes anywhere as sophisticated as Amicus Attorney's. Also, check out their 'Do' button and their 'precedent' processes.

Recommendations to other buyers: Nope. In my opinion, I think its the best 'off the shelf' case management program on the market. Pros: I like that Amicus has all emails associated with the file, all time posted, you can enter notes all in one place Cons: The software is not that easy to figure out without someone teaching you how to use it. Reports are a little troublesome. Overall: The customer support is great. The functionality is great. We have used this product for 8 years.

It holds all information for a client in one place. I wish the online version was as robust as the desktop version. We would like to move to the online version but would lose some functionality. Pros: For me, the most used feature is, of course, the calendar, followed very closely by the phone message/communications feature. Cons: It would be easier if the reports feature, used to print timesheets and phone messages, printed in a better format.

Currently, the format used is one that has to be then modified and/or edited for easier readability before printing. Overall: Love the software. Having the client contact information, the team's calendars, file events, ToDo's, and the individual team members timesheets at my fingertips is invaluable when working the the clients' files. Recommendations to other buyers: My advice would be to integrate a standard WordPerfect and/or Word format for the reports feature. Pros: The core functionalities of Amicus are so ingrained in our firm's work process and so easy to use that most users take it for granted.

Features added in recent years, such as Amicus Anywhere, give us confidence that Amicus is changing in the same direction as our firm while maintaining the core functionalities that we rely on. Cons: Our worst problems with Amicus have always been caused by integration with third-party programs such as PCLaw and especially Outlook/Exchange. Integration is a huge part of what makes Amicus useful, however. Overall: Our firm has used Amicus since its early days and it has been a valuable addition to our practice, saving lawyers' time by making it easy to keep track of contacts, time, billing information, and for document generation. From an administrator perspective, it is easy to maintain and upgrade with good developer support and admin tools. Pros: Ease of use, functionality, tracking, billing and invoicing could not be any easier.

Automatic email tracking, billing and document management is remarkable. Cons: Additional reporting options as well as a little more customizable features would be nice. However, Amicus is always open to feedback from customers. Overall: I have been using the Amicus cloud edition for over a year.

It has assisted me greatly in creating and sustaining a successful business model and structure. Recommendations to other buyers: I use this software for medical and vocational case management.

I found Amicus on accident performing a google search for case management software. It works well for other professionals (besides attorney's) who do case management and have a need for case management software. Pros: The best thing about Amicus Attorney is that everything about my practice is in one place: my contacts, my files, my calendar, my time, my emails and my documents - and I can access it all in my office, in my car, or half way around the world, as I did last March while in Australia (and the customer support is awesome!) Cons: Frankly, there is nothing I am unhappy about with Amicus. Overall: In 1996 I introduced Amicus Attorney software to my small law firm, and I still use it today as a sole practitioner. I consider Amicus to be 'mission critical' software for my practice, allowing me to keep my files and clients and contacts organized with the seamless link to Microsoft Exchange and Outlook, my time under control and properly recorded and synced to my PCLaw accounting software, and my documents at my finger tips with the Amicus link to Dropbox. Amicus Attorney allows me, as a solo practitioner to stay on top of practice and to compete on a business level with lawyers having much more extensive back office support personnel. Recommendations to other buyers: My advice is to try Amicus Attorney, and give it an honest effort - if you do, you will come to rely on it the way I do.

Pros: Calendaring events is easy, which negates the risk of failure to timely file lawsuits, responses to motions and requests for admission, etc. We sleep much better knowing our risk in these areas is so low. Cons: Had a bit of difficulty getting used to emailing from Amicus rather than Outlook as we had in the past, but it was a low learning curve. Entering time through Amicus also took a bit of getting used to, but once we got used to the process it has gone smoothly. Overall: We first purchased Amicus Attorney in 2007. Installed on our network server and five workstations. Entered all of our client data, easily uploaded our documents, and it has been a breeze to work with since.

Wouldn't trade this program for the world! Recommendations to other buyers: We would encourage anyone to try Amicus Attorney. It is a powerful package that truly streamlines our practice and puts everyone on the same page.

Easy for one paralegal to 'cover' for another that may be out as client information and status is easily shared, giving them the ability to quickly get 'up to speed' on a case they have not handled before. Pros: Amicus has allowed my firm to be at the forefront of our industry by enabling us to be completely paperless and meet the Federal and State efiling requirements. The automated document control features saves time by allowing us to skip the scan, save, move, paste, and name, routine of saving documents to locations where they can be found. Amicus does all those steps automatically, and in addition, has the capability of allowing you to preview documents in the Amicus file without even having to open them!

The customization features allow you to make Amicus look and do the way you want tasks done. You do not have to conform to it, Amicus will conform to you. The creation of timeslips and billing will shock you in its ability to capture all your time.

Reviewing and editing time entries is fast and easy. The publishing them to a bill is seamless and fast. The ability to preview and edit bills is efficient as well.

And of course, you can customize your billing templates to make your bills look the way you want. The Client Portal is another firm saving feature. It allows you to give access to Clients to view documents, events, messages, that you select. I view it as a malpractice insurance feature! All communication is open to the Client. They can view their documents, their appointments, and can message you. It totally eliminates the complaint that, 'I can't reach my lawyer.'

Everything is there for them to see. And again, only what you allow. Cons: Amicus is a really great product. Little issues such as the Client Portal is a little finicky can be improved.

It is a new feature and needs to allow Clients the ability to reset their password and to log on easier. Overall: The practice of law at any level is a business. As such the bottom line must always be considered. Amicus has saved money for the firm and has also made money for my practice.

It has saved money by being so efficient that I have reduced staff. I no longer need a file clerk or an assistant to take time to organize my time, calendar, and tasks. Amicus does all those things automatically. Amicus has made money for the firm by automatically and efficiently creating time records and bills.

Recommendations to other buyers: As with all software, what you put in is what you get out. Carefull and consistent use will reap exponential rewards. Pros: Setting up files, attaching contacts and email to files and adding appointments to the calendar is easy. The client portal is very helpful keeping in contact with clients and letting them know what is going on with their case. Cons: You are not able to add multiple categories to documents; you cannot create a word document within the program; revising a document and saving is complicated - you have to save to your desktop and then save to case program - need to be able to directly save document into program. Overall: This program is replacing another case management program.

The transition has been simple and not complicated. Pros: Timesheets and billing are interfaced automatically. Cons: Bugs in billing: e.g., last month I ran 358 bills that never printed.

I had to get the list of bills from a report and then individually print them by going into the bill images and requesting a print. That is the second time that happened and they have no explanation for why it happened or how I can prevent it. Overall: We are going on 3 years using this product. Overall since we only use it for timekeeping and billing it works OK.

However, the billing side is buggy and there are a limited number of staff who can fix the problems. They accept support email, but rarely answer them. I often wait 15 minutes or more on hold before I get through to support. Support is of the 'take a message and have someone else fix the problem' not first-line answers to problems. Comments: In 2009, we moved from Time-Matters after using it for several years because Lexis-Nexis could not get its act together. The product crashed almost daily and support required leaving a voice mail and hoping someone would call back. We moved to Amicus Attorney Premium with the help of a vendor-approved consultant.

We soon learned that Amicus Attorney did not fully understand how to network their product or implement terminal services. Download Film Narnia 2 Gratis. The consultant was of little help and was terminated. After much effort, we finally got things working and the product was vastly superior to Time-Matters. As the product has been improved over the years with better integrated billing software and SQL, the issues have almost disappeared. We now run it on its own virtual server eliminating issues caused by the interaction with other software.

Each year the product is enhanced significantly. For example, it recently added direct connection to Exchange Server so user emails do not have to be integrated with client files at the work station level. It handles all our documents, client files, billing, timekeeping, calendaring etc.

So that our attorneys have all documents available anywhere Internet is available. I highly recommend it.