A little known and infrequently used feature in Timeslips, called “Replacement Slips”, can be a powerful solution for a firm’s clients’ bill formatting demands. Our clients’ clients, it seems, want it all, and often attempt to dictate to our clients their exact bill formatting specifications. Fortunately, Timeslips can typically meet these client-imposed challenges. Replacement Slips are a good example of this.
A Replacement Slip is created as a substitution for a defined group of slips. Here’s an example:
When invoices are created, expense slips may be summarized by the type of expense. So, no matter how many charges were entered for postage, faxes, etc. they are added up and summarized as one line item on an invoice. But then a client wants to see any and all travel charges presented in detail. How can you list detailed travel expenses but continue to show other expenses one line item at a time on the same invoice?
The answer is as follows:
- Set up your layout so that all expenses show in detail.
Detailed Expense Slip
- Create replacement slips for all expenses that are not travel charges
- Go to the Slips menu –> Replacement Slips
- Select your client from the drop-down list and click on the New button
Expense Replacement Slip
- In our example, select an Expense that is not travel but whose slips are included on an invoice. Enter a description for the replacement slip. You may optionally set up a date range for this rule to be in effect.
- Click OK to save your rule
- Therefore, when you generate the invoice, you will see all travel-related charges appear in detail. However, any other expenses will show up as summarized line items.
The same concept can work equally well for time charges. If your firm is a CPA firm preparing tax returns for small businesses, for instance, you may want to generate an invoice that simply shows the amount billed for the preparation of the 1120-S, the K-1, and the owner’s 1040 return. You can still charge your time to all of the actual work performed, but you can “replace” all of those individual charge descriptions with a single description for the return type. In this case you would want to “replace” slips not by the activity code, but by “Reference”, where the various tax return types are defined as Timeslips references.
Time Slip Replacement
This approach to bill formatting of course puts a premium on careful definition of both your activity codes and your references. Unleashing the full potential of Timeslips often requires the interaction of various “moving parts” to achieve the coordinated, integrated end result. This can be daunting to the new Timeslips user.
That’s why we are here. We can lead you away from the false alleyways and dead ends that can be endlessly frustrating in attempting to achieve a specific result with your billing software.
Recently a cloud-based time & billing application announced it had a new “killer” feature. We’re always happy to see innovation–but Sage Timeslips has had that same feature in its program for almost 30 years. Are you getting the most from your software and applications? We can help you find out–or show you solutions to meet your clients’ demands. Call us at 877-357-0555 or write to [email protected].
Dana Riel is President and Founder of Business Solutions, Inc., serving the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area since 1985. Her firm is the authorized training center for the region for Time Matters and PCLaw by PCLaw|Time Matters, PLLC; Timeslips and Sage 50 Accounting by Sage Software; and QuickBooks by Intuit Corporation. She also serves as a consultant for Caret Legal (formerly known as Zola Suite), CosmoLex, Soluno & TimeSolv. As a trainer, Dana has provided training services to organizations such as the DOD Defense Logistics Agency, Judge Advocate General’s Office (JAG)/Department of the Navy, University of the District of Columbia School of Law, U.S. Department of Commerce and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, as well as with small‐ to mid‐size law firms in the Baltimore‐Washington D.C. area. In 2009, she participated in the series of day‐long seminars sponsored by the District of Columbia Bar Association Practice Management Section, titled “Basic Training: Learn About Running a Law Office”. Ms. Riel also served as an Adjunct Professor in Georgetown University’s Paralegal Studies Program, having taught the course, “Legal Ethics/Legal Technology” in 2009; and “Legal Technology” for the Spring and Summer Semesters of 2010. She presently serves on the Advisory Board for PCLaw|Time Matters, PLLC.