Dan Bowman

“Buy Now, Pay Later” options are becoming increasingly popular at checkouts. These short-term financing options allow consumers to finance both everyday and big-ticket purchases in the hundreds or thousands of dollars to make payments easier.

Now, the short-term financing trend has made its way to the legal industry. Legal fee financing is an alternative payment method that law firms can offer to relieve the burden of high one-time bills and improve access to legal services for the clients who need it most.

Learn more about legal fee financing and other alternative payment methods to provide a more client-centric experience at your law firm.

What Is Legal Fee Financing?

Legal fee financing is an alternative funding solution that allows clients to pay for their legal costs in regular intervals. The payments are typically set up as monthly payments, giving clients time to manage their legal fees instead of a high lump-sum payment.

With legal fee financing, your law firm receives the full payment amount up front, then the client pays a third-party creditor in installment payments. Traditional financial institutions may offer loans, but legal fee financing often involves short-term loan creditors. The American Bar Association offers guidance on how law firms can help clients with financing options.

How Is Legal Fee Financing Different from Payment Plans?

Though they both involve installment payments, there are a few key differences between legal fee financing and payment plans:

Legal Fee Financing

Legal fee financing helps firms grow their client base by broadening client access to legal services. Unfortunately, that also comes with extra costs. For example, if a client misses a payment, they could end up with a lot of interest that will increase their total cost, or worse, involve significant debt or collections.

There are downsides for law firms as well. Offering legal fee financing gets you paid up front and improves cash flow, but the tradeoff is monthly processing fees that can get expensive.

Pros:

• Helping clients pay for legal services more easily with smaller, more manageable payments over time
• Broadening and diversifying the client base for your law firm
• Getting upfront payments for legal services without burdening clients

Cons:

• Clients may struggle to make payments with interest and end up in collections
• Installment payments have monthly process fees for the law firm that can add to monthly expenses

Payment Plans

Payment plans allow clients to pay over time with a number of different models, including installment payments, subscription models, and more. There are no additional fees for these options – there’s just an agreed-upon amount that clients pay on a predetermined schedule until the balance is paid off.

Without the added interest and fees, payment plans are a more client-centric option that allow clients to handle large bills within a schedule that works for them, while also giving your firm steady cash flow.

Pros:

• Flexible payment arrangements to suit clients’ needs
• Improved access to legal services and a diversified client base
• No additional fees or interest for clients or law firms with on-time payments
• Multiple payment models to suit a variety of clients

Cons:

• With payment plans, law firms don’t receive upfront payments for legal services
• Breaking up large legal bills for complex cases can create poor cash flow

Benefits of Offering Multiple Ways to Pay

Offering multiple ways to pay benefits your law firm in many ways, including:

Client Convenience

Legal fees can be challenging for some clients, especially during economic downturns. Not everyone has the means to pay large legal bills at once, but they still need legal help to address their issue. Offering multiple payment options – including payment plans – allows clients to choose a way to pay that works best for their budget.

Gain Insights from Reporting

Multiple payment methods that are tracked digitally ensure that you have accurate, real-time reporting to continuously improve your firm’s client experience. Once clients make payments, they’re automatically posted to the account and synced within your accounting platform. Over time, you can see what payment options work best for your clients and the state of your firm’s cash flow and accounts receivable.

Reducing Physical Checks and Payment Methods

Some clients may prefer physical checks and invoices, but the legal industry is increasingly shifting to digital methods. Offering different payment options and digital delivery of invoices and payments allows clients to choose the method that works best for them. And on your end, you won’t need to deal with the administrative burden of manual billing and collections, checks getting lost in the mail, and manual data entry.

Get Paid Faster

If you’re relying on a manual invoicing process, it takes time to update invoices, send them, wait for the checks to come, and register the payments. This delay is bad enough, but if payments are late, your firm could struggle with the burden of poor cash flow. Flexible payments reduce the likelihood of having to devote a lot of time each month to following up on late payments.

How to Adopt Payment Plans with Bill4Time

If you want to offer payment plans and alternative fee arrangements at your law firm, there’s no better way than Bill4Time Payments. This payment option allows you to accept online payments and process all transactions within the system – without the need for third-party services or integrations.

Bill4Time also supports custom payment plans according to your client’s needs to avoid missed payments and make the experience more convenient. You can create payment plans for weekly or monthly installments, offer financial flexibility, and ensure your law firm gets paid on time. Bill4Time has automated payment reminders as well to help your clients stay on top of their bills.

Streamline Law Firm Payments with Legal Billing Software

Flexible payments are about more than just helping your clients – they can be a huge advantage for your firm. With multiple payment options, you can provide access to legal services for a wider base of clients, bring in more consistent revenue, and make a difference in your clients’ lives.

While initially a necessity during the widespread pandemic shutdowns, remote work is here to stay. More and more law firms are getting on board and embracing remote work — even as far as entirely virtual offices — but with certain disadvantages of remote working, it’s not for everyone.

Discover the advantages and disadvantages of remote work at law firms, including the major challenges and solutions to create a well-oiled remote machine.

Why More Firms Are Working Remotely

The legal industry has long been one of the most resistant to the changing landscape of the workforce, including remote work. But once the pandemic forced businesses to adapt to remote work practically overnight, more law firms and lawyers saw the benefits of incorporating remote work into their practice.

Why Do Law Firms Struggle with Remote Work?

Law firms face heavy compliance rules and confidential data that creates additional challenges in supporting remote staff. Law firms are taking a more customized approach, such as a hybrid model with partial remote and in-office work or a completely virtual firm with no physical office.

Collaboration is another sticking point, as it’s crucial to the day-to-day operations in most law firms. This is particularly apparent with older lawyers that are more accustomed to in-person meetings and interactions with clients and support staff.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Remote Work for Law Firms

Remote work isn’t ideal for every firm. Here are the advantages and disadvantages of remote work for law firms.

Advantages

Increased Flexibility and Work-Life Integration

One of the biggest benefits of remote work is the flexibility in schedule. Lawyers and staff can manage their schedules at the times that work best to balance the responsibilities in their personal lives, leading to better work-life integration.

Expanded Talent Pool and Access to Remote Expertise

Talent is hard to come by, especially if location is an issue. Allowing remote work significantly expands your talent pool and gives you an opportunity to recruit the best and brightest for your firm, rather than relying on who’s in the immediate area.

Cost Savings and Reduced Overhead Expenses

Virtual law firms often go without a physical office or significantly reduce office hours. While this doesn’t work for every firm, having less in-office time means fewer overhead expenses and operational costs.

Disadvantages

Potential Impact on Teamwork and Collaborative Dynamics

Remote work limits face-to-face interactions between staff members and clients, taking a toll on communication and teamwork. While virtual communication tools can help, more traditional lawyers and clients who prefer in-person interactions may struggle with the change.

Difficulty in Maintaining Work-Life Balance

Some remote employees feel like they never clock out and suffer from the blurred lines between work and home. Work-life balance is tough enough to achieve in law, let alone with a remote work schedule and no clear separation between work time and leisure time.

Limited Access to Physical Resources and Facilities

Not everyone is technologically sophisticated. It’s easy for staff working remotely to miss communications or struggle with the technology to support remote work. For example, a VPN may limit access to a matter, creating security risks or limitations on staff.

Tips to Optimize How Your Firm Works Remotely

Considering remote work for your law firm? Follow these tips to optimize your remote processes:

Establish Clear Communication Channels and Protocols

Clear and consistent communication is essential when working remotely. Establish communication channels like email, messaging, and video conferencing with clearly defined expectations for response times and availability.

Implement Effective Project and Task Management Systems

Software tools designed for remote collaboration and task tracking are crucial to keeping your team on track. Implement systems to assign and track work, set deadlines, monitor project progress, and enable communication between staff.

Foster a Culture of Trust and Accountability

It takes dedication and autonomy to thrive without the direct supervision of an in-office environment. Foster a culture that values trust and encourages staff to take ownership of their work. Once you set clear expectations for performance and provide feedback, entrust your staff to manage time and meet deadlines.

Prioritize Cybersecurity and Data Protection

Cybersecurity risks are one of the challenges for remote work in the legal industry. You need robust cybersecurity measures in place to protect sensitive client information and confidential data, including secure internet connections, strong password policies, regular software updates, and regular staff training. Your team should have VPNs and multi-factor authentication (MFA) for an added layer of security.

Encourage Regular Check-Ins and Virtual Team-Building Activities

Teamwork and collaboration are important for a productive remote environment. Encourage periodic check-ins with one-on-one meetings or team video conferencing to provide support and facilitate camaraderie. Virtual team activities, such as online games and happy hours, help staff bond and boost morale in a remote environment.  

Finding the Best Tools to Work Remotely

Remote work is the new normal, even for the legal industry, but it’s important to have tools to support lawyers working from home – including legal practice management software.

For example, time tracking, which is already a challenge in the office, can be more difficult for remote teams. Automated timekeeping with legal practice management software saves time with inputting and minimizes errors while providing clear, seamless communication about the time spent on cases and legal billing. 

Working remotely as a lawyer presents challenges with document management, but cloud-based documents allow all pertinent staff to see updates and make changes as needed to keep work flowing. With tools like access control, you can restrict access to documents to “need to know” only. Document management with Bill4Time also integrates with your current tools, such as Google Docs or Microsoft Word.

Another important tool is a communication and collaboration platform. Once remote staff has clear expectations, a centralized communication platform helps lawyers and support staff feel more connected and simulates an in-office environment. It also sets clear boundaries with availability for better work-life balance.

For client communication, a client portal enables secure, rapid communication between lawyers and clients. All conversations can be connected to a client’s account or case to ensure nothing is lost in the shuffle.

Final Thoughts on Remote Work

There are pros and cons to remote work – for both the firm and the staff. If you’re considering remote work for your firm, it’s important to have a plan and systems in place, including legal practice management tools, to provide support and encourage accountability and productivity.

Though you may have opened your own firm to practice law, at its core, a law firm is a business. Whether you’re tracking overhead expenses, billing, or taxes, you have to pay attention to key law firm profitability metrics and what they mean for your firm and legal practice management.

How do you know if you’re in the red or black? If you’re hitting revenue goals for the quarter? After all, lawyers can lose up to half their revenue from billing mistakes, but key performance indicators (KPIs) offer insights into your business performance to grow and profit.

What Are Key Performance Indicators?

A key performance indicator is a data point that demonstrates whether you are reaching your business goals – a set of quantifiable measurements used to gauge a company’s long-term performance. Taken as parts of your whole financial picture, you can determine if your law firm is moving in the right direction for your goals.

Like most data, KPIs start with a goal, such as “how many hours did my associates bill last quarter?” or “how many clients did we bring in this year compared to last year?”

Some examples of KPIs that law firms use include:

• Hours billed
• Revenue for the quarter or year
• Number of invoices submitted and paid
• Number of new clients acquired

What Is a Metrics Dashboard?

A metrics dashboard is where you find all your relevant KPIs in one centralized location. At a glance, you can see where your law firm stands from a business perspective, including whether you’re making money or how much value you’re deriving from talent.

Your metrics dashboard also enables deeper analysis using analytics, which track your KPIs over time. With analytics, you can evaluate the trends and patterns of your business over a specific timeframe and create new goals based on the information.

In short, a dashboard gives you a view of your business in the short and long term.

Common Methods Law Firms Use to Track Metrics

Law firms vary in how they track metrics and KPIs, but most use the following methods:

Manual Tracking and Data Entry

Though common in the legal industry, manual tracking and data entry is the least efficient and most error-prone of all the methods. It’s easy for associates to forget how many hours they’ve billed or how many clients they’ve spoken to in a given timeframe. Manual tracking and entry also takes time in itself, pulling you or your staff away from revenue-generating activities.

Practice Management Software

Practice management software offers a myriad of benefits for your law firm, including robust, customizable, and easily shareable reports to evaluate your firm’s financial health. Software with a centralized dashboard keeps all the information in one place, including key financial reports like a balance sheet or income statement.

Specialized Legal Analytics Tools

Specialized legal analytics tools can be helpful for visualizing data trends and predicting outcomes, but it doesn’t necessarily give you the KPIs you need to get the feedback necessary for rapid business decisions.

Outsourced Metric Tracking and Reporting to Third-Party Providers

Outsourcing the work for metric tracking and reporting to third-party providers is a great way to save time, but it adds some complexity. There can be security concerns or communication issues, not to mention the added costs.

How to Organize Your Dashboard

Dashboards can be a huge help to your firm, but they’re ultimately just a tool. You have to set up your dashboard properly to get the most out of it.

Identifying Relevant Law Firm Profitability Metrics

There are virtually endless metrics you can track in your firm, but that’s not a good use of your time. Choosing your metrics should be based on the goals you have and the questions you want answered. If you’re not sure, start with the common law firm KPIs and go from there.

Grouping Metrics Based on Categories or Areas of Focus

Once you have a list of metrics, categorize them based on different areas of focus like client management, financial performance, case management, staff performance, or marketing efforts. This will help you organize your dashboard to get the information you want.

Designing a Visually Appealing and User-Friendly Dashboard Layout

A visually appealing and user-friendly dashboard is key for the effectiveness of your metrics tracking. Use tools and features like labels and data visualizations like bar charts and line graphs to make data trends easier to understand – and explain to other stakeholders.

Customizing a Dashboard to Suit Your Specific Needs and Preferences

A robust legal practice management software platform will have a customizable dashboard that reflects the specific needs of your firm, such as custom tags, real-time data updates, and benchmarks or targets based on industry data. These features exist to make your experience easier, so use them to your advantage.

5 Financial Metrics Law Firms Should Track

• Revenue and profitability metrics. This is your bottom line. This is the simplest, most critical metric that needs to be top of mind at all times.
• Billing and collection metrics. It sounds obvious, but keeping track of your bills is a critical operational need that needs to constantly be monitored.
• Expense tracking and management metrics. Expenses may change depending on what is happening with the business. For example, your marketing budget may need to be expanded, or heating and cooling during the summer and winter months. All of the items that need to be paid for to keep the business running need to be tracked under expense metrics.
• Utilization and realization rates. How much are you actually able to bill, and how much of that billing are you able to translate into revenue? These ratios can tell you a lot about how much of your efforts and tasks are profitable.
• Client acquisition and retention metrics. This is perhaps the second most important metric besides profitability. Clients drive revenue, and long-term clients equal money in the bank. Knowing how many clients you have and how many clients you are keeping is a key component of maintaining the viability of your business.

Using Bill4Time’s Reporting Dashboard to Simplify Metric Tracking

Bill4Time’s legal practice management reporting dashboard features customizable options to prioritize the data that matters most. It’s also user-friendly – all you have to do to set up your dashboard is type, click, and drag. Consider what you want to prioritize, whether it’s time and expenses, client management, or other information.

When you need to evaluate your data, you can use the reporting function to look at the performance of your chosen metrics over time. If you need to share that information, you can export the raw data as a .xlsx or .csv file.

Gain Insights into Your Firm

Running a law firm isn’t as simple as just practicing law. You have to pay attention to the business side of things, which includes metrics and KPIs that indicate your firm’s overall health. Law practice management software is a crucial component to organize your data in an easy-to-use dashboard that keeps it at your fingertips.

Law firms amass sensitive client data and confidential information, an appealing reward for a sophisticated cyber attacker. According to the 2022 ABA Cybersecurity Tech Report, 27% of law firms experienced a security breach.

Law firms need to be proactive about data security so they don’t become a statistic. Learn about your ethical responsibilities to cybersecurity and how you can mitigate your firm’s risk of a cyberattack.

American Bar Association (ABA) Data Compliance Rules and Regulations

Lawyers have a professional and ethical responsibility to protect client data and disclose a breach if it occurs. According to the ABA Rule 1.6: Confidentiality of Information, lawyers must “make reasonable efforts to prevent the inadvertent or unauthorized disclosure of, or unauthorized access to, information relating to the representation of a client.”

The ABA also has several Ethics Opinions that guide lawyers on how to address cybersecurity:

• Securing Communication of Protected Client Information
• Lawyers Obligations After an Electronic Data Breach or Cyberattack

Data Compliance Regulations Your Law Firm Should Know

Data security laws are complex and can vary by location, especially for law firms that may handle clients in different locations or with different types of sensitive information. Here are some data compliance regulations your law firm needs to know.

General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR)

In 2018, Europe introduced a unified data protection law, GDPR, for businesses handling personal data. This law requires enhanced protection of personal data for EU individuals. While this only applies to companies in Europe, the regulations could impact a US law firm. It’s best to learn about GDPR and stay compliant.

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA)

HIPAA is a federal law requiring healthcare providers and business associates to safeguard protected health information (PHI) from accidental disclosure. Law firms are considered business associates and may have access to medical records for cases, so it’s essential to comply with HIPAA when handling PHI for clients.

California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)

In 2020, California introduced CCPA to mirror GDPR and require enhanced protection of personal data for California residents. Law firms that operate in California or have California-based clients must be compliant with CCPA.

Stop Hacks and Improve Electronic Data Security Act (SHIELD)

Like California, New York introduced SHIELD to safeguard personal data. This act includes a requirement to implement reasonable security safeguards for any business in possession of the personal data of New York residents. This is in addition to the state’s existing data breach notification requirement, which is one of the strictest in the country.

Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Act

The FTC Act allows the FTC to prosecute businesses for unfair or deceptive acts or practices, including apps or websites that contain misleading information about privacy and security. This rule applies to all US companies regardless of industry and extends far beyond data privacy. One of the toughest aspects of the FTC Act is that the organization issues fines to companies that aren’t compliant and continues to levy them until it’s resolved.

Best Practices for Data Compliance in Your Firm

Be Proactive, Not Reactive

A reactive approach to mitigate cybersecurity incidents means you’re always one step behind. Law firms are a valuable target for hackers, so it’s important to take a proactive approach and implement security measures before a cyberattack happens. This not only reduces the risk of attacks in the first place but limits the damage if one occurs.

Create a Security Policy

An unfortunate number of security issues start with user error, not flaws in the tech. Your firm needs a clear, easy-to-follow plan for data security that everyone at the firm is privy to. Educate your employees and enforce best practices like multi-factor authentication (MFA) for logins and only using approved apps.

Train Staff

Despite the best intentions, staff can be a weak link in your firm’s data and cybersecurity. Compromised credentials, accidental link clicks, or weak passwords can be an access point for a hacker. Don’t assume your employees know how to recognize and report suspicious behavior – train them. Create a culture of cybersecurity and conduct regular training with current staff and new hires to keep everyone on the same page.

Use Tech with Legal-Specific Security Controls

Data security is ultimately the ethical responsibility of your firm, but the law practice management software you use can make this more challenging. Make sure you vet your vendors thoroughly to ensure that they’re as committed to cybersecurity as your firm.

The ideal option is working with a law practice management solution that uses legal-specific security controls, including MFA, activity tracking, user permission controls, and secure client communication portals.

Updates in Data Compliance

As high-profile breaches rise, more and more states and jurisdictions are implementing their own data compliance and information security rules. It’s possible that there will even be a federal data compliance regulation like GDPR.

There are 15 states that have bills in progress, as well as three that have laws on the books that went into effect this year:

• Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act (CDPA): As of January 1, 2023, Virginia CDPA will protect the privacy rights of state residents.
• Colorado Privacy Act (CPA): CPA will go into effect on July 1, 2023, and grants Colorado residents rights over their data. This act is similar to CCPA.
• Utah Consumer Privacy Act (UCPA): The UCPA goes into effect on December 31, 2023, and offers businesses a little more leeway than other states. It only applies to businesses that target Utah residents, have revenue of $25 million or more, and meet thresholds for data collection.

International regulations are also changing and affecting international markets. South Africa, China, and the United Arab Emirates all passed privacy legislation in 2021, and it’s likely that other countries will follow. The US and EU also have a preliminary deal to outline how US-based companies can store the personal data of European residents.

Stay Compliant with Legal-Specific Software

Robust data security isn’t a step above any longer. It’s an essential part of running a business, including a law firm. With the sensitive information your firm has, it’s essential to be proactive in safeguarding data security and mitigating the risk of a breach with security controls, training, and security-focused law practice management software. 

Law firms are businesses and modern consumers expect the same security, convenience, and flexibility to pay for legal services as they do for other transactions. If your firm doesn’t offer a variety of electronic payment options, you could be falling short of client expectations – and missing out on clients as a result.

Learn more about the options for electronic payments for law firms, their pros and cons, and how you can reap the benefits of a more streamlined payment system with law firm billing software.

The Importance of Electronic Payment Methods at Law Firms

Electronic payment encompasses virtually all technology-enabled methods of handling transactions, whether through credit card, eCheck, or bank transfer. These methods are similar to accepting cash, paper checks, or money orders, except they exist in the virtual space and not the physical one.

The COVID-19 pandemic ushered in more acceptance of electronic payment methods to avoid handling cash or physical cards, but clients have been moving in that direction for a while now. According to the 2023 Future of Payments Survey from Onbe, a market-leading corporate disbursements platform, 70% of respondents prefer to receive payments digitally and 73% prefer to shop and pay with digital methods.

This trend clearly illustrates that consumers are seeking electronic payments, even when it comes to law firms. It’s essential for your firm to modernize and offer these payment options to promote a better client experience and attract and retain clients.

Types of Electronic Payment Methods

Credit and Debit Cards

Credit and debit cards offer a convenient way for clients to pay. With a credit card, they have a revolving line of credit to pay a large bill at once and make more manageable payments over time. Debit cards function like checks or cash, allowing the client to pay a bill directly from their bank account.

According to a TSYS survey, 75% of people prefer to make online payments with a credit or debit card. It also revealed that 65% of people expect credit or debit cards to be a payment method option, even for law firms.

Pros:

• Credit and debit cards are familiar to clients and tend to be the method they use to pay for virtually everything in their day-to-day lives.
• They’re more convenient and offer a quick, easy, and secure method to pay with the peace of mind of knowing their bank or credit provider has them covered for disputes.
• For your firm, credit and debit cards get your firm paid faster. Clients are more likely to cover their bills quickly if they have a convenient method – especially if you have a secure payment platform.

Cons:

• Credit and debit cards have processing fees that you’ll either need to cover yourself or charge to the client, which is a negative aspect of the experience for clients.
• There’s a risk of fraud, but that can be mitigated with a secure payment processor.

eChecks

Electronic checks, or eChecks, are a digital version of a conventional paper check. eChecks are delivered via the Automated Clearing House, or ACH, which is how many people get their direct deposits from employers.

Conventional paper checks are falling out of favor with clients, so it’s possible that eChecks will replace them completely. According to a survey, 55% of consumers don’t use or rarely carry their checkbooks. Among young consumers, 61% have never written a check.

Pros:

• ACH processes eChecks safely, securely, and quickly, typically over the Internet.
• eChecks are safer than conventional checks, as they can’t get lost in the mail or be forged.
• eChecks have a faster delivery than a paper check that needs to be mailed or dropped off.
• The cost of processing an eCheck is much lower than a conventional check.

Cons:

• eChecks carry a risk of fraud, but this can be reduced with a compliant payment processor.
• Processing times are a bit slower than other forms of payment, such as credit cards.
• Lawyers need to follow ethical guidelines with eChecks.

Virtual Cards

Virtual payment cards are an option that’s similar to having a debit card or credit card in that they have a card number, CVC, and expiration date, but they’re only valid for one use for a predetermined amount.

Pros:

• Virtual cards are single-use for a predetermined amount, so they’re less susceptible to fraud than credit or debit cards.
• Companies can control the amount and limit unauthorized spending.

Cons:

• Predefined limits and expiration dates on virtual card payments restrict law firms’ control and flexibility.
• Technical issues with virtual card systems can disrupt payments, causing delays or failures.

Bank Transfer

Bank transfers are a simple way for clients to transfer money directly out of their bank account using their routing and account numbers. The entire process is straightforward and secure.

Pros:

• Bank transfers ensure that the funds are available.
• They can be processed quickly.
• Bank transfers are processed as wire, electronic transfer, or eCheck.
• You’ll receive an instant notification that a payment is in progress.

Cons:

• Bank transfers can face delays and errors, causing issues for law firms requiring prompt payments or fund receipts.
• Transaction fees for bank transfers, particularly international or currency conversions, can impact a law firm’s financial efficiency over time.
• Bank transfers lack transparency, making it difficult for law firms to track and reconcile financial transactions in real time compared to online payment platforms.

Mobile Payments

Mobile payments have increased in popularity with the ubiquity of the smartphone. According to data from Juniper Research, mobile contact payments will exceed 49 billion in 2023 and have grown 92% over the past two years.

Mobile pay is similar to an actual wallet and holds all the user’s credit card and banking information, except it’s stored securely in a virtual space.

Pros:

• Mobile pay is more convenient than a physical wallet since everything is stored on a smartphone.
• Clients can pay from anywhere when it’s most convenient for them.
• Clients have the option to pay with whichever method they prefer, from ACH to credit cards.
• Law firms get paid faster because clients have all their payment information at their fingertips.

Cons:

• Limited acceptance of mobile payments restricts law firms’ payment options and can cause inconvenience.
• Mobile payments pose security risks, requiring law firms to implement robust security measures.
• Law firms relying on mobile payments are susceptible to disruptions due to technical issues and connectivity problems.

Improve Collections at Your Law Firm with Bill4Time

If you want to modernize your firm to accept digital payment methods, Bill4Time’s billing, payment, and law firm invoicing software helps you support these goals. 

The native payment processor, Bill4Time Payments, allows you to accept online payments and process all transactions within the same secure system you manage your practice. Industry-low transaction fees and best-in-class payment technology get your firm paid 70% faster than average billing practices. 

With Bill4Time Payments, your firm also benefits from: 

• Legal-specific software that maintains compliance with accepting online payments 
• Custom payment links that can be added to invoices and emails to get paid from anywhere
• Payment plans with automated reminders to reduce large bills so clients pay their bills on time
• Robust reporting to easily track and allocate payments to the proper client or matter

Bill4Time reduces the administrative burden often associated with the billing and collections process by streamlining how your firm gets paid. If you’re ready to adopt online payments without worrying about compliance, you can book a demo today!