TaxAgility are able to assist independent solicitors and law firms.

As accountants specialising in solicitors and law firms, we recognise that the legal sector is changing quite quickly, particularly where law firms are trying to become more innovative with their pricing.

How can we help you?

We are able to assist independent solicitors and law firms identify and put in place the most appropriate business structures and assist with ongoing accounting and tax-related issues, particularly in how to best manage the different fee structures and methods available to a law firm. The changes we have seen in the legal sector we understand is driven by clients demanding greater transparency of costs and fees and by individual law firms looking for ways to differentiate themselves in a congested and competitive market.

What We Aim To Achieve

Naturally, TaxAgility is capable of providing a full suite of accounting, bookkeeping and tax services to solicitors and law firms. However, law firms are usually extremely busy environments, high case loads, large volumes of paperwork and unforgiving processes mean that an average solicitor will find it hard work to maintain adequate records for billing and accounting purposes. Having an in-house administrator helps to relieve the pressure, but having an accounting firm that specialises in law firms can reduce the burden even further and, reduce costs. Our goal is to introduce efficiency improvements in to your business’s billing and accounting processes. There are a number of areas we can focus on to achieve this.

Our services also include:

Why not put your business in the hands of an accountant that cares about it as much as you do? Contact TaxAgility today!

Cloud-based accounting

Moving to a cloud-based accounting service suits many small to mid-sized law firms. Services such as Xero make it beautifully simple to enter the basic information need to keep your accounts up to date. This eases the load on the administrator and streamline’s your internal processes. Tax and VAT become functions the system takes care of and not monthly and quarterly chores. Then at year-end, accounting firms like TaxAgility already have all the information we need to prepare your year-end return. In return, this can result in significant costs savings in your accounting bill.

What business models do you employ?

Just as solicitor accountants like TaxAgility are looking to differentiate themselves through more innovative accounting services, solicitors and law firms are also achieving the same innovation in business models.

The array of different business charging models available to a solicitor is varied and can be quite complex. We are familiar with most of the business pricing models solicitor firms use, which include:

  • Fixed fee
  • Time-based
  • No-win, No-fee agreements
  • Damage-based agreements (Contingency fee arrangements)
  • Retainer
  • Value billing
  • Funded by Insurance
  • Performance bonuses

In addition to time, client-related costs have to be carefully accounted for. Disbursements have to be collated and accurately charged to each case, these vary depending on the model employed.

Accounting for Alternative Business Structures

In recent years, again driven by competition and the desire to differentiate, law firms have increasing looked to broaden their services by becoming an ABS.  A key advantage of such structure is the ability to extend equity funding participation beyond the legal sector, without needing to involve participants at a managerial level.

Naturally, growth in any form, increases the complexity of your operation and its accounting and tax reporting obligations. At TaxAgility, we can help advise you on company structures and assist in developing effective growth strategies and with tax planning. If you’re a solicitor or run law firm and want to grow your legal services business, talk to law firm accounting specialists TaxAgility today.