Did you know that you can quickly convert Journal, Calendar, and Document Management records into billable fees? Use the Convert to Fee option in PracticeMaster to convert emails, research records, timers, notes, meetings, tasks, documents, and more into fees. Converting records into fees helps make sure your clients are being billed for the time you spend on their matters.
Converting a record to a fee
When you convert a record to a fee, a Convert to Fee window is opened which shows the same fields as the Fee file. If the original record does not contain a Client ID, you will be prompted to select a client before the Convert to Fee window is opened. When applicable, the Date and Description fields are automatically populated from the original record. You can then enter any other information for the fee record such as the Timekeeper, Tcode, Hours to Bill, etc. and save.
There are multiple ways to convert a record into a fee.
- From the All Activity or Calendar list in Matter Manager:
- From the Take Action group of the Quick Clicks pane, select Convert to Fee.
- Click the
(Convert to Fee) button to the right of the record (All Activity List only).
- From the Journal, Calendar, and Document Management Files:
- Right-click the record, point to Action and select Convert to Fee.
- From the Take Action group of the Quick Clicks pane, select Convert to Fee.
- From the Edit menu, point to Action and select Convert to Fee.
- From the Daily/Weekly/Monthly Calendar: Right-click the record and select Convert to Fee.
- Click the (Convert to Fee) button on the toolbar.
When a record is converted to a fee, a new fee is created without removing the record from the Journal, Calendar, or Document Management file.
Convert to Fee Settings
Default settings can be specified for calendar, email, note, phone, research, timer, and document records via Convert to Fee Settings (In the Quick Launch, search for and select “Convert to Fee Settings”). Settings are saved per user, so each login user has their own default settings. Default settings are broken down by record type (e.g., timer, email, document, etc.) and provide defaults for tcode, timekeeper, description, time to bill, and more.
Make sure you don’t have billable time that’s slipping away. Start converting records to fees and see how much additional time you can bill for.
Tabs3 Billing allows you to optionally assess finance charges on your clients’ past due balances, but how does the calculation work?
When a statement is generated for a client whose past due balances are subject to finance charges, Tabs3 Billing examines the statement date for each of the client’s past due statements, and compares each to the current statement date. A finance charge is then calculated for each of the past due statements, and these amounts are added together to determine the total amount of finance charges to be billed on the current statement.
Knowledge Base Article R10850, “All About Finance Charges,” provides a flowchart that breaks down exactly how finance charges work along with examples, and includes frequently asked questions and a finance charge worksheet.
Our Knowledge Base can be accessed at support.Tabs3.com. You can also access our Knowledge Base in the Quick Launch by searching for and selecting “Knowledge Base.”
Do you need to make a change that affects multiple clients or matters? Do you want to save time by changing clients all at once instead of one at a time? Use the Change Client Options utility! The Change Client Options utility allows you to change options in the Client file for a range of clients.
You can change options for client setup, rates, billing, and statements. This includes changing the timekeepers assigned to a case, client status, payment settings, fee and cost rate table information, billing status, sales tax and finance charges, statement delivery options, statement format settings, statement notes, and more!
For example, let’s say you have created a new Email Template, and you want to change all clients with a specific primary timekeeper to use this new template. You could edit each client to make the change, but with Change Client Options, you can change all clients at once!
To change all clients with a specific primary timekeeper at once
- In the Quick Launch, search for and select “Change Client Options.”
- On the Client tab, specify the Primary Timekeeper of the clients for which you want to add the new template.
- For the Client ID range, clear the Client ID Thru field. This field intentionally defaults to 0.00.
- From the Billing tab, click the Select button.
- Select Email Template from the list and click OK.
- Select the Email Template to use.
- Click OK.
The Change Client Options utility provides several features to help minimize errors. First, you are prompted to back up your data prior to running the program. If you inadvertently change a setting for the wrong clients, or you change the wrong settings, you can restore the backup to undo the changes. Second, the Client ID Thru field is automatically set to 0.00. This prevents an accidental change to all clients across the board. And third, you must click the Select button to specify the exact field(s) to which you want to make changes. Only the fields you select will be available to change; therefore, other fields and settings do not get changed.
The Change Client Options utility simplifies global changes, which means you will have more time for your regular tasks!
Have you checked out Tabs3 Connect yet? Tabs3 Connect is a Platinum feature that provides access to Tabs3 and PracticeMaster anywhere you can connect to the Internet, and it’s easy to navigate. Simply browse to Tabs3Connect.com and log in to access your data!
A – You can access Matter Manager, Clients, Contacts, Calendar, Costs, Fees, and Recap of Hours from the home page and from the toolbar at the top of each page.
B – Use the timer feature to start, pause, and resume a timer, and to see a list of current timers. Timers can optionally be converted to fees.
C – The Alarm icon shows how many alarms are past due, the eNote icon shows how many unread eNotes you have received, and the ? (Help) icon opens a menu with the following options: Help, Privacy Policy, Administration, Contact Us, Use Full/Phone Layout, Disable Text Macros, and Logout.
D – Use Matter Manager to access your client and contact information via the All Activity, Billing Summary, Calendar, Contacts, Costs, Documents, Fees, Journal, Phone and Email, and More Files buttons.
For more information on Tabs3 Connect, contact your consultant, call Technical Support at (402) 419-2210, or visit Knowledge Base Article R11480, “All About Tabs3 Connect.”
If your firm creates the same documents for clients on a monthly, weekly, or even daily basis, it can be a struggle to constantly rewrite and maintain your documents effectively. By using variables to automatically pull information into your commonly used documents, you can save time without the hassle of duplicate entry.
The Intro to Coding Document Assembly Templates video walks you through the basics of creating new templates and coding documents to your specifications. Learn how to insert variables, create logic statements, and automate functions like creating a fee based on the completion of a document.
Watch this five-minute video here:
Training Videos can be accessed at Tabs3.com/videos. You can also access the videos in the Quick Launch by searching for and selecting “Training Videos.”
When entering information into the software, have you saved an entry only to realize you needed to enter the same description into the next entry as well? If so, there is an easier and quicker way than going back to the last record to copy the information. When you are in Fee, Cost, Payment, or Client Funds, pressing F2 while in the description field will automatically replace the transaction code’s default description with the Description entered for the previous entry saved during the current data entry session.
We need to find a specific statement, but the only reference we received is a statement number. How can we search by statement number?
You can easily locate statements by number using the Statement Manager.
To find the statement number in Statement Manager
- In the Quick Launch, search for and select “Statement Manager.”
- Click the Stmt # column heading to sort by number, then type the statement number to use incremental searching. The list will scroll to the statement number you specified.
…or… - In the Search List field, enter the statement number. The list will be filtered to only the statement number you specified.
- Click the Stmt # column heading to sort by number, then type the statement number to use incremental searching. The list will scroll to the statement number you specified.
When you have located the statement, you can double-click the record to see the statement information, or use the Quick Clicks actions to perform other common tasks such as reprinting, emailing, or making a payment.
Our firm has recently started synchronizing contacts with Outlook. How can we prevent specific PracticeMaster contacts from synchronizing to Outlook?
There are multiple ways to prevent PracticeMaster contacts from synchronizing to Outlook. The simplest method is to select the Do Not Sync check box on the contact record.
To prevent a contact from syncing with Outlook
- In the Quick Launch, search for and select “Contacts.”
- Double-click the contact you want to change.
- Select the Do Not Sync check box.
- Press Ctrl+S.
- Repeat steps 2-4 for each contact you want to prevent from syncing.
In addition to this method, you can also filter contacts by timekeeper, category, or using a custom filter. See Knowledge Base Article R11488, “Controlling Which Contacts Synchronize Between Outlook and PracticeMaster,” for more information on these additional methods.
