I ran a Detail Work-in-Process Report and noticed that several of the entries had a status of “U” on them I’m not familiar with that status; what does a “U” status mean?
Transactions that have been processed on a final statement, but not updated via Update Statements, have a “U” status. This status denotes that, although the transaction is technically work-in-process, there are some limitations on what can be done with them.
When a transaction has a “U” status, you cannot transfer, delete, or change the status of the transaction. However, you can make edits to the transaction. Keep in mind that any changes to a critical field on the transaction, such as to the rate, hours, or amount, will require you to generate a new final bill before you can update the statement.
Sometimes our clients will make a payment on their account while they are in the office. Is there a way we can print a receipt for them?
Receipts can be printed for work-in-process payments right from the Payment Entry or Client Funds windows. The Client ID, work description, statement #, receipt type, reference, received by (User ID), date, description, and amount fields will be displayed on the receipt. If the Receipt Type selected is Check, the check # will also be included on the receipt.
To print a payment receipt
- From the File menu, point to Open and select Payment.
- Enter the payment as you normally would, or select an existing work-in-process payment.
- Click the
(Print Receipt) icon.
My client’s Client Funds account is set to a Fund Application Method of Automatic All and their Statement Format is set to Detail. However, their Client Funds activity is not showing on my statement. Why is this?
If the statement does not include any current work or billed amounts, a Payment to Firm will not be generated from Client Funds. In addition to this, if the Client Funds only shows a balance and no activity, the Client Funds section will not show on the statement unless the Customization option Include fund balance on statements for clients with only a fund balance is selected.
To enable the fund balance to show on statements with no activity
- From the Utilities menu, select Customization.
- On the Options tab, in the Client Funds section, select the Include fund balance on statements for clients with only a fund balance check box.
- Press Ctrl+S.
Beginning with Version 2020, Tabs3 Billing and Trust Accounting Software (TAS) supports integration with LawPay for electronic processing of payments, client funds deposits, and trust deposits. LawPay supports both credit and debit cards in Tabs3 Billing and TAS, as well as electronic fund transfers (eChecks) from checking or savings accounts in Tabs3 Billing.
Tabs3 Billing allows you to manage the client’s payment methods from either the LawPay tab of the Client file or from the Payment/Client Funds Entry windows. TAS allows you to manage your LawPay payment methods from the Trust Transaction Entry window. You can add or remove payment methods as well as update the email address for each payment method. When an email address is present, the client will automatically be emailed a receipt each time that payment method is used.
Once you have enabled LawPay in Tabs3 Billing, you can include a LawPay payment link in the statements you email to your clients. This allows clients to pay their statement with a credit card or eCheck without anyone at the firm handling sensitive payment information. Once a client has paid their bill via LawPay, you can import the payment into Tabs3 via the Import Online Payments program (Maintenance | Integration | Import Online Payments). See Knowledge Base Article R11767, “Using the Tabs3 Payment Link,” for more information regarding setting up payment links and importing payments. For more information on LawPay integration, see Knowledge Base Articles R11828, “LawPay Integration Frequently Asked Questions,” and R11826, “Configuring LawPay Integration with Tabs3 Software.”
We are looking for firms to provide early feedback on Tabs3 version 2020. The following features will be available in Tabs3 Version 2020:
- LawPay
- Tabs3 Billing – LawPay integration adds a new option for processing electronic payments and client funds deposits
- Trust Accounting Software (TAS) – LawPay integration adds a new option for processing electronic Trust deposits
- Dashboards
- Tabs3 Billing – displays Aged Accounts Receivable, Unbilled work, and graphs comparing the last two years of Cash Receipts and Billing History
- Accounts Payable Software (APS) – displays Unpaid Invoices, Unposted Checks and EFTs, and the total Paid this Month with shortcuts to Print Checks, Post Checks, and the Check Register report
- General Ledger Software (GLS) – displays an overview of your Bank Accounts and a list of Recent Bank Transactions
- Trust Accounting Software (TAS) – displays an overview of your Bank Accounts and a list of Recent Trust Transactions
- Positive Pay
- Positive Pay export from APS and TAS helps provide fraud protection
If you are using Version 19 and are on maintenance, you can jump on board early with these new features. To sign up, visit Tabs3.com/prerelease. If you have any questions, please email signup@tabs3.com.
We are looking for firms to provide early feedback on Tabs3 version 2020. The following features will be available in Tabs3 Version 2020 later this year:
- LawPay
- Tabs3 Billing – LawPay integration adds a new option for processing electronic payments and client funds deposits
- Trust Accounting Software (TAS) – LawPay integration adds a new option for processing electronic Trust deposits
- Dashboards
- Tabs3 Billing – displays Aged Accounts Receivable, Unbilled work, and graphs comparing the last two years of Cash Receipts and Billing History
- Accounts Payable Software (APS) – displays Unpaid Invoices, Unposted Checks and EFTs, and the total Paid this Month with shortcuts to Print Checks, Post Checks, and the Check Register report
- General Ledger Software (GLS) – displays an overview of your Bank Accounts and a list of Recent Bank Transactions
- Trust Accounting Software (TAS) – displays an overview of your Bank Accounts and a list of Recent Trust Transactions
- Positive Pay
- Positive Pay export from APS and TAS helps provide fraud protection
If you are using Version 19 and are on maintenance, you can jump on board early with these new features. To sign up, visit Tabs3.com/prerelease. If you have any questions, please email signup@tabs3.com.
I created a Payment to Firm from within Client Funds, but the payment is not showing up in the Payment file. Why is this?
When entering a Payment to Firm in Client Funds, payments with a Fund Application of Apply to Fee, Apply to Exp, Apply to Adv, or Apply to All will not be created in Tabs3 until the statement is updated. Once the statement has been updated, the archived payment will be viewable on a Transaction File List, Client Ledger Report, and other reports on which payments are shown.
If you need to have a payment record created when the Payment to Firm is saved, then a Fund Application of WIP Payment must be used instead. When selecting WIP Payment, a Payment entry window is opened upon save to create the linked payment record. If the Payment entry window is closed without saving the payment information, then no payment record is created.
Note: Payments entered as a WIP Payment will apply toward any current work-in-process first, and then apply to accounts receivable amounts according to the Payment Application settings stored in the Client file.
I made a client funds deposit into the wrong client matter by mistake. How can I transfer the funds to the correct matter?
Moving funds from client to client in Client Funds can be accomplished by withdrawing the funds from the matter you mistakenly deposited it to. During the withdrawal process, you have the option of depositing it into another matter’s account.
To transfer client funds
- From the File menu, point to Open and select Client Funds.
- Enter the Client ID for which you mistakenly deposited funds.
- Select a Type of Withdrawal.
- Enter the desired description.
- Press Ctrl+S.
- In the Withdrawal Options window, select the Deposit the Withdrawal amount into Client Funds for Client option and enter the Client ID to which you want to move the funds.
- Click OK.
- Enter the desired Description for the deposit.
- Press Ctrl+S.
Did you know that you can change your view to see either more fields or fewer fields in certain files?
By clicking the 
(Detail/Rapid) button, or pressing Alt+I, you can specify whether you see all of the fields in a file or only key fields. This option is available in the Tabs3 Billing Fee, Cost, Payment, and Client Funds Entry windows, as well as the APS Invoice/Manual Check Entry window. Detail mode includes all of the fields, whereas Rapid mode simplifies the data entry process by only showing the most pertinent fields.
The following fields are not shown when in Rapid Mode:
Tabs3 Fee Entry – Hours to Bill, Rate, Amount, Category, Bill Code, Rate Code, Status, User ID, Date Entered, Sales Tax
Tabs3 Cost Entry – Timekeeper, Bill Code, Rate Code, Status, User ID, Date Entered, Sales Tax
Tabs3 Payment Entry – Status, User ID, Date Entered
Tabs3 Client Funds Entry – User ID, Date Entered
Accounts Payable Invoice/Manual Check Entry – Due Date, Voucher #, Amount to Pay, Discount Amount, Discount Date, Net Amount, Take Discount, Hold/Pay, User ID, Date Entered
Take a moment to look at these options and see if you can help streamline data entry for your office!
If you’re not already using client funds, you may be wondering how to set it up and start using it.
The Client Funds feature in Tabs3 can be used to maintain a separate accounting of client funds for non-refundable retainers. These funds are kept separate from the client’s accounts receivable balance and are typically deposited in the firm’s general account.
Before entering client funds transactions, you must first set up the client. Once the client is set up, you can use the Client Funds file to enter client funds transactions. Deposits, withdrawals, and payments to the firm can be made to the client funds account.
The Using Client Funds video walks you through setting up a client for client funds, including more information on each of the setup options. This video will also walk you through entering a Deposit and a Payment to Firm, explaining how each field affects how the transaction is handled.
Watch this eight-minute video here:
Note: Other funds such as trust funds, escrow funds, refundable retainers, etc., can be entered as Client Funds, but using a trust account system (such as Tabs3 Trust Accounting Software) is recommended to better comply with state bar recommendations.
Training Videos can be accessed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, at Tabs3.com/videos. You can also access Training Videos while in the software by selecting Help | Documentation and then clicking the See also link for Tabs3 and PracticeMaster Training Videos.
Did you know that you can do more with Entry Lists than see current work-in-process transactions? The Fee, Cost, Payment, and Client Funds Entry Lists can be printed, filtered, and set to include archived records.
Entry Lists can be toggled to be hidden or displayed using the 
(Toggle List) button or Alt+G. Once the Entry List is displayed, the following additional buttons are available:
- Print List – Click the
(Print List) button to print a list of all transactions currently displayed in the Entry List. - Select Date – Click the
(Select Date) button, or press Alt+L, to select a date for which transactions will be displayed. This button is only available when filtering by Transaction Date or Entry Date via View Options. - View Options – Click the
(View Options) button, or press Alt+O, to filter the Entry List by Client ID, Transaction Date, or Entry Date; select to include only those records for a certain Timekeeper or User ID; or select to Include Archived Records.
You enter data regularly; make sure you are getting the most out of your Entry List by showing the information you want to see and quickly printing lists when needed.
