Every law firm has some form of process documentation, yet these three levels vary greatly. There are typically 3 different tiers.

The first tier is most common in small firms - your lead accountant has most of your firm's processes in their head, along with a giant folder of cryptic notes that might as well be a recipe for homemade bread. They are outdated, sloppy, and no one would be able to follow them should the author get "hit" by the proverbial bus. As an attorney, you feel a false sense of comfort here because you feel your key employee will be by your side forever and they can always train someone if needed. The truth is, this tier is highly risky for a number of reasons.

The second tier is highly common in medium sized firms that have recently grown and your process documentation has simply not been updated or your accounting team is no sophisticated enough to create a set of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) that are truly necessary for a firm of this size. I speak from first hand knowledge that this scenario leads to a lot of errors, fraud and / or costly issues should key employees leave or, in some cases, take advantage of the firm.

The third tier is what every firm strives to have in place. They have professional SOPs for all processes with clear and effective controls, can be easily followed by anyone with a a few years of accounting experience and safeguard the firm's hard-earned money by utilizing generally accepted accounting principles. I will sit down with your team and walk through the firms processes in a very respectful and non-judgmental way. I have done this exercise with many, may companies and I find that there are always areas to improve and peace of mind is always achieved by both the owners and the staff.

It should be a priority to have a professional assess the documentation you currently have. Contact me to arrange a convenient time for me to evaluate your firm's existing processes!