Use the client and matter picker to navigate to the correct matter then click “New”
Bill Maintenance
- “Bill Creator” will default to the logged in user, but can be changed by using the dropdown box
- “Bill Date” will default to today’s date but can be changed either by typing the date in or using the calendar to pick the correct date. Please note there are rules that apply, including that the date must be in the current month plus one or if the previous month is still open a bill can be back dated into that month
- “Bill To” this is the party that the invoice will be addressed to. This will default to the chosen client or to the party as pre-set on the matter (if different from the client) and can also be changed to another party by clicking on the grey cross, this will give the option to either choose another existing client/non-client from the database or to add a new party
- “Bill Reference” will create an auto-incremented reference number if selected however will otherwise be customisable. The Bill Reference is not populated until the invoice reaches the Authorised stage
- “Bill Signatory” will default to the matter author, but can be changed by using the dropdown box, some invoice templates may include the Bill Signatory
- “Invoice Template” if your firm has more than one invoice template set up, use the dropdown box here to select the correct one. The template selection can be changed at any time before the invoice is posted
- “Include signatory block” this field only pertains if the firm is using “Standard Invoice Report” i.e. not an invoice template - untick the box if the signatory block is not to be included on the invoice
- “Include payment slip” this field only pertains if the firm is using “Standard Invoice Report” i.e. not an invoice template - untick the box if the payment slip is not to be included on the invoice
- “Invoice Narration” is a free text typing box (note: there are no formal formatting rules in this box, paragraphs of text are best)
- “Use WIP File Notes” click this button to insert WIP file notes into the Invoice Narration box
- “Select Narration” the firm may have set narrations for different fee types. These can be set via the Administration Tab> Manage Codes>Invoice Narrations. Select the required narration from the dropdown box
- “Edit Narration” use this button to pop the narration box out for easier visibility when editing
Setting the fee value
The middle portion of the Bill Maintenance screen relates to setting the fee value for the invoice. WIP already recorded on the matter will appear here and be ticked on to be included in the bill. To choose or add WIP or to write off or premium up the WIP already recorded, click the grey cog.
As shown in the picture below, this is the first method to set the fee value of the bill. By default, all WIP on the matter will be included on the bill. If the amount shown in Fee Amount is correct, there is no edit required, simply select “OK”. If the amount is not correct, highlight the "Fee amount" and type in the required value, click “Pro-Rate Fee”. This will proportionately adjust the fee value across all authors with WIP on the matter, based on each author’s percentage of WIP.
The example below shows the mark-up/premium of $1,000 from the WIP on the matter. The fee share for each author is highlighted in green. The premium is split according to each author’s percentage share of the recorded WIP but can be custom split by overwriting the fee in the green boxes.
The example below shows a mark down/write off of $600 from the WIP value on the matter. The fee share for each author is highlighted in red. The write off is split according to each author’s percentage share of the recorded WIP but can be custom split by overwriting the fee amount in the red boxes.
In the example below, click on “Select WIP” to move to the method of manually editing the individual WIP transactions that will be included in the fee.
Manually tick or untick the individual WIP records to be included or excluded ie left behind as WIP on the matter for a future invoice or use the “up to date” or “up to value” options and click “Go” (see below).
Selecting “up to value” will get the value as close as possible to the loaded value but will not split WIP records to get to the exact value. To get to the exact value, return to the first method and Pro-Rate the fee.
In the Select WIP screen, individual WIP transactions can be written off or transferred to another matter – in the example below, all the WIP for author JMC will be written off
In the example below, all the WIP for author JMC is going to be transferred.
Use the Select WIP screen to add an author into the fee that has not recorded any time on the matter. Click on the green plus to add Value WIP to the fee
When all the WIP is selected / written off / added a mark-up / recorded for the fee, click Save & Close – the fee amount will be reflected on the Fee Maintenance screen, click Ok to return to the Bill Maintenance screen – the fee amount and the GST on the fee will be displayed
Expenses & Disbursements
Expenses & disbursements can now be included on the invoice. If expenses or disbursements have already been debited to the matter, and have not been included in a previous invoice, they will appear in the Expenses & Disbursements box, already ticked on, automatically adding them to the invoice
If any of these expenses or disbursements are not to be included in this invoice, simply untick the items.
If there are more expenses to be added to this invoice, use the green plus. This will open the Expense posting screen, use this to add the rest of the required expenses
Saving an Invoice
When all expenses and disbursements have been added, the invoice is ready to:
- “Save” this saves the invoice in draft with a draft bill reference, draft invoices can be amended at any time including deleting the draft. All WIP transactions and expenses & disbursements attached to this invoice will be tagged with the draft bill reference. NOTE that a draft fee is not shown on the matter. An invoice can be printed to either Word or PDF at this stage.
- “Save & Authorise” this saves the invoice and assigns an invoice number. All WIP transactions and expenses & disbursements attached to this invoice will be tagged with the invoice reference number. NOTE that an authorised fee is not shown on the matter. An authorised fee can be deauthorised, this returns the fee to a draft. As a draft it can be amended or deleted. An invoice and statement combo can be printed to either Word or PDF at this stage.
- “Save & Post” this saves the invoice, assigns an invoice number (if the invoice did not pass through the authorise stage) and posts the fee to the matter. This is the point of no return. A posted invoice cannot be deleted. If a posted invoice is no longer needed it must be reversed. Reversing an invoice will reinstate all WIP and expenses back as unbilled.
Once Save & Post is clicked, the following options will be available, as below
- Print will print the invoice in PDF format
- Print Invoice and Statement will print the combined invoice and statement in PDF format
- Manage Invoice to matter will manage the invoice to the matter in PDF format with the Filename as set up by the firm (Administration Tab>Practice Settings>Invoice Settings>Invoice filename format)
- Manage invoice and statement to matter will manage the combined document to the matter in PDF format with the Filename as set up by the firm (Administration Tab>Practice Settings>Invoice Settings>Combined Invoice and Reporting Statement filename format)
Finally, the Account Rendered Maintenance screen will display – apply funds in hand to the account rendered, if the client has given authority to do so by clicking on the green plus
Statement Tab
When creating a single invoice there is also a Statement tab, this allows a reporting statement to be created as well. A standalone reporting statement can also be created from the Home ribbon in OnePractice. View the Reporting Statement Manual here to learn more about this function. View the Statements Manual here to learn about Reporting Statements using the Statement Builder function.