The benefits of outsourcing your legal cashiering

Law - 28/07/2023

Whilst we’d all like to think that we can manage every aspect of our business ourselves, the reality is that when it comes to an industry as heavily scrutinised and fast-paced as law, you can’t afford to cut corners – especially when your reputation is at stake.

That’s why outsourcing your legal cashiering to specialist experts will not only save you the time and stress of trying to unravel the legalities behind your firm’s accounting records, but will also give you the peace of mind that your finances are being handled by experts who specialise in ensuring your accounts are accurate and fully compliant at all times.

What exactly is legal cashiering?

Legal cashiering is a pretty niche role. In order to realise how valuable a legal cashier is for your law firm, you need to truly understand what they do.

For law firms of all sizes, it’s now no longer enough to rely on standard accounting skills for your financial reporting. While basic accounting skills are certainly needed, being a legal cashier requires expert knowledge in legal compliance. This includes a full understanding of all the regulations and requirements of various legal regulatory bodies, which is what makes legal cashiers such an integral part of your firm.

Legal cashiers – why you need them

Essentially, legal cashiers are qualified bookkeepers who specialise in managing financial accounts for law firms and the legal sector. 

What makes a qualified legal cashier so unique? They ensure compliance in accordance with the regulations and requirements of the SRA Accounts Rules (The Solicitors Regulation Authority).

Amongst other things, legal cashiers are responsible for: 

• Processing accounting transactions – sent and received
• Performing bank reconciliations so that bank accounts and books tally up
• Producing regular reports on the financial status of the law firm
• Checking for errors and reporting any accounting breaches
• Billing and invoicing clients for work
• Processing disbursements and expenses
• Submitting VAT returns via HMRC’s MTD portal
• Maintaining separate client and office ledgers 
• Ensuring compliance with relevant rules and regulations
• Liaising with compliance officers, clients, auditors, regulators, suppliers and banking accountants

Outsourcing legal cashiering – the benefits

While law firms strive to streamline their operations and enhance profitability, many are discovering the advantages of outsourcing their legal cashiering requirements.

As legal professionals, your main focus is to provide the best legal services to your clients. Taking responsibility for specialised financial tasks such as legal cashiering can be time-consuming and distract you from focusing on your job. That’s why outsourcing legal cashiering services can positively impact your firm’s productivity and bottom line!

The expert knowledge

Outsourcing legal cashiering allows you to tap into the specialised expertise and industry knowledge of professionals who are well-versed in the intricacies of legal financial operations. 

These experts possess a deep understanding of the SRA Accounts Rules, compliance requirements and other regulatory requirements, which means they can ensure compliance and minimise the risk of errors or penalties. 

Because of their experience in handling similar tasks across a variety of firms they come equipped with valuable insights and best practices that can optimise your financial processes.

Saving you time & money 

Maintaining in-house legal cashiering can be a significant drain on a law firm’s resources. It requires recruiting, training, and managing qualified staff, as well as investing in software and equipment. 

Outsourcing your legal cashiering can save you around 30% in salary costs. It’s the perfect cost-effective solution, as law firms only pay for the services they require, without the overhead costs associated with maintaining an in-house team. Plus, outsourcing can free up your time so that you can focus on the work that really matters – your clients.

Improved efficiency

Legal cashiering involves a multitude of time-consuming tasks; from managing client accounts and handling payments to processing invoices and ensuring regular compliance. 

However, by outsourcing these responsibilities, you free up valuable time and resources within your firm enabling your legal team to concentrate on their core competencies – providing exceptional legal counsel, building client relationships and contributing to increasing the firm’s revenue. 

By allowing your team to focus on their strengths, you can boost overall productivity and deliver superior client service to maintain and build your reputation.

Compliance is king

Financial regulations and reporting requirements are constantly evolving in the legal industry, making it challenging to keep up with the latest requirements

Understanding and upholding compliance is as much about protecting your clients as it is about protecting your firm. That’s why it’s crucial that your legal cashier is always fully up to speed with the current compliance regulations. 

The Ministry of Justice has recently increased the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s (SRA) fining powers from £2,000 to up to £25,000 for ‘traditional’ firms and the solicitors who work in them in a bid to protect clients.

As legal cashiering is a critical part of a firm’s compliance, by partnering with trusted experts who specialise in outsourcing legal cashiers, you can rest assured that you remain compliant with the relevant legislation to avoid costly fines and any negative impact to your firm.

If you need one single reason to outsource your legal cashiering, this is probably it – the assurance of compliance.

Scalability & flexibility 

Law firm caseloads can be unpredictable with varying levels of activity throughout the year. Outsourcing legal cashiering services offers the advantage of scalability and flexibility. Whether you experience a surge in workload or you need to scale back during quieter periods, outsourced legal cashiers can quickly adapt to meet your changing needs, regardless of the circumstances. You won’t have the added worry of having to reduce hours or make redundancies!

Maintaining confidentiality to give you peace of mind 

Safeguarding your clients’ information is paramount within the legal profession, so when it comes to outsourcing any kind of work that deals with confidential finances, it’s crucial that you choose the partner carefully.

Outsourcing legal cashiering to reputable, specialised accounting firms such as Numero ensures that yours and your client’s data is always protected by robust security measures.

We employ advanced technologies and stringent data protection protocols, and our secure servers ensure confidentiality, integrity and compliance with the latest data protection regulations at all times. 

With an established, trusted accounting firm, you’ll have peace of mind knowing that your financial data is in the best capable hands.

Numero – your trusted partner in outsourced legal cashiering 

Here at Numero, we work with over 60 law firms across the UK and pride ourselves on being experts in outsourcing accounts and legal cashiering. We are a recommended cashiering provider for Insight Legal & LEAP and work across all CMS and accounts software packages (if it’s a system we aren’t familiar with, we will get to know it!)

Our experienced team works flexibly according to your specific needs and is dedicated to handling your firm’s day-to-day business transactions, professionally and efficiently at all times. We pride ourselves on being an invaluable part of your team.

Don’t let legal cashiering be an afterthought, get in touch to get started and see first hand the benefits of partnering with us to outsource your legal cashiering.