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Invoices

Invoicing overview

There are many different electronic formats available for creating invoices and you can submit an electronic invoice in any format that your client accepts. Tracker defines two different categories of electronic invoices: LEDES and non-LEDES.

Supported LEDES Formats

LEDES (Legal Electronic Data Exchange Standard) is an open standard for the electronic exchange of billing and other information between corporations and law firms. LEDES ebilling standards are globally recognized and accepted as industry-specific electronic data interchange standards for the exchange of legal ebilling information. Tracker supports the LEDES 1998B, 1998BI, 1998BI V5, and LEDES XML 2.1 formats.
Although Tracker does not require you to post invoices in the LEDES format, some companies request that their firms generate and post invoices using a LEDES format.

Common Non-LEDES Invoice Formats

If you are not posting a LEDES 1998B or LEDES 1998BI invoice, you can post any type of electronic file that contains your invoice. Common formats include:
  • Microsoft Word — .doc. docx
  • Portable Document Format — .pdf
  • Microsoft Excel — .xls, .xlsx
  • Plain text — .txt
Most time and billing systems have the option to either print to paper or print to file. Your client must be able to read the electronic file. Your firm should consult with your client before posting an invoice in a file type other than a common file format.

Speedpost

Tracker SpeedPost lets you post LEDES-formatted invoices quickly without having to know the matter name or matter number.
Requirements for posting an invoice with SpeedPost:
  • The invoice must be in the LEDES format.
  • Your firm's client and matter numbers for the matter must be entered in Tracker.
  • UTBMS expense codes should be included in the invoice. However, you do not need to provide UTBMS task or activity codes for fee line-items.
  • You can post multiple invoices in a single file. However, each invoice in the file must contain its own invoice number. In other words, you can't post one invoice to multiple matters, but you can have a file containing multiple invoices, each of which is posted to a separate matter.

Use the LEDES Generator to Create a LEDES 1998BI-Formatted Invoice

The LEDES Generator lets you create and post a single LEDES 1998BI (international) invoice that includes taxes. You can use this tool even if you are not creating an international invoice.
When you create a LEDES invoice, you use a standard format and separate the work performed and expenses into individual line items. Each line item includes a description of the work performed and the amount charged for the work, including any applicable tax. The individual line item amounts for fees and expenses are totaled to create the total amount for the invoice.

This article applies to:

  • Product: Legal Tracker
  • Subject: Invoices
  • Audiences: Firm