Overview

ℹ️ Feature Availability: The functionality described in this article is being released in stages. Some features are generally available, while others are currently unavailable (marked with *) and will become available in a future release. If you cannot see a feature described below, it may not yet have been released to your organisation.

This guide explains how to create and edit a single invoice for a single matter.

Use this article to:

• Create a draft invoice
• Review invoice details
• Add unbilled time
• Add positive or negative incurred disbursements and Cost Recoveries
• Adjust, group, discount, or write off invoice items
• Finalise an invoice

Bulk invoicing across multiple matters is covered in a separate article.

Before You Start

Check that:

• The matter has been created
• The client or billing entity has been added
• The matter contains billable items, if applicable
• You have permission to create and edit invoices

Open the Matter

Open the matter using one of the following options:

Create the Invoice

1. Open the matter.
2. Select Invoices + from the matter card menu.
3. Complete the invoice details.
4. Select Save.

The invoice will be created as a Draft or Pending invoice, depending on your firm workflow.

Invoice Detail Fields

Retained Amounts and On Account Value

If funds held on account will be used towards the invoice, complete the retained amount fields.

On some generated bills, the Retained Amount may appear as On Account Value. In this context, On Account Value means the amount retained or applied from funds held on account for the matter.

The retained amount may reduce the amount payable by the client.

Review the Invoice Total

During Invoice Setup, the summary displays the provisional Invoice Total, including tax.

The summary includes:

• Tax – The total tax for the invoice. This remains visible when the tax value is zero.
• Fees – The net value and number of fee items.
• Disbursements – The net value and number of disbursement items.
• Cost Recovery – The net value and number of cost recovery items.

The Invoice Total and Tax are recalculated when invoice items or the billing-date range are changed. Depending on the items selected, the provisional Invoice Total may be positive, negative or zero. Review the total and tax before saving or finalising the invoice.

The gross Invoice Total is also used when validating the Retained Amount.

Review Invoice Items

After the invoice is saved, open Invoice Items to review the items included on the draft invoice.

From Invoice Items, you can:

• Add unbilled items
• Add new items
• Bill items later
• Group items
• Adjust fees
• Add discounts
• Write off items

Add Unbilled Items

Use Add Unbilled to add existing unbilled items from the matter to the draft invoice.

Available options may include:

Only items available to bill will appear. Items already included on another draft invoice, written off, deleted, or outside the invoice billing period may not be available.

Add Unbilled Time

1. Select Add Unbilled.
2. Select the time entries option.
3. Choose the time entries to add.
4. Confirm the selection.

The selected time entries are added to the invoice.

Add Unbilled Disbursements

1. Select Add Unbilled.
2. Select the disbursements option.
3. Review the available disbursements.
4. Add the required disbursements to the invoice.

Open disbursements for the matter can be added when they fall within the invoice billing period.

Add a New Time Entry

Use Add New when the time entry does not already exist on the matter.

1. Select Add New.
2. Select Time Entry.
3. Complete the time entry details.
4. Confirm whether the entry is Billable.
5. Select whether the entry should be saved as Pending or Finalised.
6. Select Save.

Bill an Item Later

Use Bill Later to remove an item from the current invoice and make it available for a future invoice.

Billing an item later does not write off, cancel, or delete the item.

1. Select the item.
2. Select Actions.
3. Select Bill Later.
4. Review the revised invoice totals.

Bill to Amount

Use Bill To Amount to bill selected fees up to a specific value or percentage.

1. Select the fee items.
2. Select Actions → Bill To Amount.
3. Enter the amount or percentage.
4. Select Preview.
5. Review the included and excluded items.
6. Select Save.

Group Invoice Items

Use Group to combine selected invoice items under one grouped description.

1. Select the items to group.
2. Select Actions → Group.
3. Review the grouped description.
4. Edit the description if required.

Text template shortcuts can be used in grouped descriptions where configured.

Add a Discount Line

Use a Discount Item to reduce the invoice total using a separate discount line.

1. Select Add New.
2. Select Discount Item.
3. Enter the discount description.
4. Enter the discount amount.
5. Save the change.

Discounts reduce the invoice total and are reflected in revenue reporting.

Adjust Professional Fees

Use Adjust to reduce selected professional fees by an amount or percentage.

1. Select the fee items.
2. Select Actions → Adjust.
3. Choose Amount or Percentage.
4. Enter the adjustment.
5. Select Apply.

The adjusted value displays on the invoice item, with the original value retained for reference.

Write Off a Fee Entry

Use Write Off when a fee entry should not be billed.

1. Select the fee entry.
2. Select Actions → Write Off.
3. Review the updated invoice totals.

Written off items move to the Written Off section and remain visible for review.

*Add Negative Incurred Disbursements and Cost Recoveries

A draft invoice can include:

• A negative incurred disbursement

• A negative Cost Recovery

• A combination of positive and negative items

• Items that result in a positive, negative or zero invoice total

Negative anticipated disbursements are not supported.

Add an Existing Negative Incurred Disbursement

A negative incurred disbursement must already exist as an open, unbilled item on the Matter.

1. Open the draft invoice.

2. Open Invoice Items.

3. Select Add Unbilled.

4. To choose a specific item, select Select Unbilled → Disbursements.

5. Select the negative incurred disbursement.

6. Add it to the invoice.

7. Review the amount, tax treatment and resulting Invoice Total.

A negative incurred disbursement must be billed once and in full. It cannot be part billed or included on another invoice after it has been billed.

Add a Cost Recovery

You can add an existing Cost Recovery or create a new one from the draft invoice.

To add an existing Cost Recovery:

1. Select Add Unbilled.

2. Select Select Unbilled → Cost Recoveries.

3. Select the required item and add it to the invoice.

To create a new Cost Recovery:

1. Select Add New → Disbursement.

2. Choose Cost Recovery.

3. Enter the required details.

4. Save the item.

Cost Recoveries cannot be part billed and must be included for their full remaining amount.

Billing Rules

• Full billing: Negative incurred disbursements and Cost Recoveries must be billed in full.

• No offset required: A negative item can be billed without a positive item in the same billing grouping or tax code.

• Duplicate billing: Once billed, an item cannot be billed again unless it is released by unfinalising the invoice.

• Tax: Review the applicable tax code and rate before finalising the invoice. A Cost Recovery uses its applicable billing tax code.

• Existing controls: Normal permissions, locked-period restrictions, client-paid item controls and retained-fund protections continue to apply.

Invoice Outcomes

Before finalising, review:

• All invoice items

• The net and tax values

• The total including tax

• Any Retained Amount or On Account Value

• Whether the resulting invoice will be positive, negative or zero

After finalisation, a negative invoice can be included with positive invoices in Cash Allocation, paid to the client using Refund Invoice, or written off where appropriate.

For complete billing, settlement, accounting and reporting guidance, see Billing Negative Disbursements and Cost Recoveries.

Finalise the Invoice

If your firm does not use an invoice approval workflow:

1. Open the draft or pending invoice.
2. Select Actions.
3. Select Finalise.
4. Confirm the finalisation if prompted.

If your firm uses an approval workflow, the invoice must follow the configured approval process before it can be finalised.

Key Points