Time Entry and Billing

Important: Create a Settlement First

Before creating any time entries, expenses, damages, or payments, you should first create a settlement. The settlement provides the framework for tracking all billing-related items and ensures proper organization of your financial records.

Learn how to create a settlement

FluentCase includes time tracking and billing features to help you accurately record billable time and generate invoices for your clients.

Table of Contents

Overview

The time tracking system allows you to:

  • Track time - Record time spent on matters
  • Categorize work - Use billing codes and descriptions
  • Bill clients - Generate invoices from time entries
  • Track expenses - Record costs and disbursements
  • Generate reports - Analyze billable time and revenue

Fees

  • Settlements
  • Time Entries
  • Expenses
  • Damages
  • Payments

Creating Time Entries

New Time Entry

Create a new time entry:

  1. Click icon next to the Time Entries tab
  2. Select a Shortcut
  3. Enter a Description
  4. Set Hours
  5. Set Rate
  6. Set Date
  7. Click Save

Creating Expenses

New Expense

Create a new expense:

  1. Click icon next to the Expenses tab
  2. Select a Shortcut
  3. Enter a Description
  4. Select a Settlement
  5. Enter Quantity
  6. Enter Price
  7. Set Date
  8. Click Save

Creating Damages

New Damage

Create a new damage entry:

  1. Click icon next to the Damages tab
  2. Enter a Description
  3. Select a Damage Type
  4. Select a Settlement
  5. Enter a Provider Name
  6. Enter a Payor Name
  7. Enter Amount
  8. Enter Amount Paid
  9. Enter Lien Amount
  10. Set Date
  11. Click Save

Creating Payments

New Payment

Create a new payment entry:

  1. Click icon next to Payments
  2. Enter a Description
  3. Select Payment Type
  4. Enter Amount
  5. Enter Due Date
  6. Enter Issued By
  7. Enter Issued To
  8. Enter Tracking Number
  9. Enter Date Issued
  10. Enter Date Received
  11. Enter Date Posted
  12. Select Settlement
  13. Click Save

Billing Codes

Standard Billing Codes

Common billing codes for legal work:

Research and Analysis:

  • Legal Research
  • Case Analysis
  • Document Review

Communication:

  • Client Communication
  • Opposing Counsel Communication
  • Court Communication
  • Witness Communication

Court and Hearings:

  • Court Appearance
  • Hearing Preparation
  • Trial Preparation
  • Trial Attendance

Discovery:

  • Discovery Requests
  • Discovery Responses
  • Deposition Preparation
  • Deposition Attendance

Drafting:

  • Pleading Drafting
  • Motion Drafting
  • Brief Writing
  • Contract Drafting

Administrative:

  • File Organization
  • Case Management
  • Administrative Tasks

Workers’ Compensation Billing Codes

WC-specific billing codes:

  • EAMS Filing
  • WCAB Hearing
  • Medical Records Review
  • QME/AME Attendance
  • Lien Conference
  • MSC Preparation
  • Rating Analysis

Custom Billing Codes

Create firm-specific billing codes:

  1. Go to Settings → Billing Codes
  2. Click New Code
  3. Enter:
    • Code name
    • Description
    • Default rate (optional)
  4. Click Save

Billing Rates

User Rates

Each user has a default hourly rate:

  1. Go to Settings → Users
  2. Select a user
  3. Set Hourly Rate
  4. Click Save

This rate is used by default for all time entries by that user.

Matter-Specific Rates

Override rates for specific matters:

  1. Open a matter
  2. Click the Settings tab
  3. Set Billing Rate for each staff member
  4. Rates apply only to this matter

Rate Overrides

Override the rate for individual time entries:

  1. Create or edit a time entry
  2. Change the Rate field
  3. Amount is recalculated
  4. Click Save

Viewing Time Entries

My Time Entries

View your time entries:

  1. Click Time in the left sidebar
  2. See all your time entries
  3. Filter by:
    • Date range
    • Matter
    • Billable status
    • Billing code

Matter Time Entries

View time for a specific matter:

  1. Open a matter
  2. Click the Time tab
  3. See all time entries for this matter
  4. View by user, date, or billing code

Team Time Entries

View time for your team:

  1. Click Time → Team Time
  2. See time entries for all users
  3. Filter by user, matter, or date

Editing Time Entries

Edit Your Own Entries

  1. Open a time entry
  2. Click Edit
  3. Update fields as needed
  4. Click Save

Edit Team Entries

Administrators and managers can edit team time entries:

  1. Go to Time → Team Time
  2. Open a time entry
  3. Click Edit
  4. Update and Save

Bulk Edit

Edit multiple time entries at once:

  1. Go to Time
  2. Select entries (checkboxes)
  3. Click Actions → Bulk Edit
  4. Update common fields
  5. Click Save

Deleting Time Entries

Delete Individual Entries

  1. Open a time entry
  2. Click Delete
  3. Confirm deletion
  4. Entry is soft-deleted (can be recovered)

Related Articles

Billing Codes Accounting Creating and Managing Matters Matters User Roles and Permissions Administration