A Legal Bookkeeper Who Already Knows Trust Accounting
Most bookkeepers learn your firm’s rules on your account. We start knowing IOLTA, retainers, and the monthly three-way, with a team behind the work, so you are never one resignation away from a mess.
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The risk is not the data entry. It is the method nobody wrote down.
Recording money in and money out is the easy part. The hard part is the philosophy behind a firm’s books: how retainers are tracked, when funds move from trust to operating, how each client ledger is kept. When a solo bookkeeper leaves, that method often walks out the door with them, and the firm finds out months later that nobody documented how things were actually done.
A generalist may not know they are creating exposure
A bookkeeper trained on ordinary small-business books has likely never touched an IOLTA. They can keep tidy operating books and still miss what trust rules require, because nothing in general bookkeeping covers them. Commingled funds, a retainer drawn before it was earned, a client ledger that does not tie out: each is a small entry to a generalist and, under the State Bar’s rules, can become a serious problem. Under California Rule of Professional Conduct 1.15, the attorney stays responsible for trust funds even when the accounting is delegated.
What a legal bookkeeper actually does for you
- Monthly three-way reconciliation on every trust account: bank, trust ledger, and client ledgers tied out.
- A ledger per client matter, with backup attached to every trust transaction.
- Retainers tracked correctly: moved from trust to operating only when earned and invoiced.
- Operating books and payroll kept current in QuickBooks Online, with monthly reports a partner can read.
Why a firm beats a single bookkeeper
- No single point of failure. Your books are documented and covered by a team, so a vacation or a resignation does not stall your close.
- A second set of eyes. Reconciliation by someone other than the person writing checks is a basic control most solo arrangements skip.
- Already trained. Every trust account we keep runs the same monthly three-way from day one: bank, trust ledger, client ledgers, tied out. That is the control most general bookkeepers skip, and it is our standing method, not something we build on your account.
What we do, and what we don’t
We are a bookkeeping, payroll, and advisory firm. We do not prepare tax returns or give legal or ethics advice. Trust-compliance judgment routes to you and the State Bar. Income tax routes to your tax preparer.
Local, secure, QuickBooks-based
Certified ProAdvisors, a secure 256-bit SSL/TLS client portal, based in Burbank and serving the LA metro.
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FAQ
Our bookkeeper is leaving. Can you take over? Yes. We will review how the books have been kept, document the method, and bring the trust account onto a proper monthly three-way.
Do you work in our QuickBooks? Yes. We keep your books in QuickBooks Online and integrate with your legal billing system.
Do you understand IOLTA? Yes. Trust accounting is core to how we keep law-firm books, not an add-on we are still learning.
Are you local? Yes. Booxmax, Inc., Burbank, CA, serving the LA metro.
This page explains general bookkeeping and recordkeeping mechanics. It is not legal, ethics, or tax advice. Trust-account compliance judgment rests with the attorney and the State Bar; tax matters route to your tax preparer.
Booxmax, Inc. · 224 E Olive Ave, Ste 217, Burbank, CA 91502 · (818) 485-2669 · Info@booxmax.com · booxmax.com