Posts Tagged ‘cash flow statement’

Pay Attention to Your Financial Statements

Monday, November 17th, 2014

 

Like the owners of any business, the partners of contingent-fee law firms divide time between financial activities (reviewing statements, managing cash, etc.) and non-financial activities (taking care of clients, marketing, hiring, etc.). My experience has been that, compared to most business people, trial lawyers generally spend far too little time reviewing and understanding the key financial reports at their firm.

This is understandable, because contrary to popular opinion, the trial lawyers I know did not get into the practice of law primarily as a means of making money. They do what they do because they enjoy helping people. So the financial aspect of law practice may not really appeal to them. They’d rather be taking care of a client or working on a case. More often than not, they may only look at their financial statements once a year, and even then it is done briefly and without a lot of understanding. After all, they don’t teach financial accounting in law school! And while the firm’s bookkeeper may do a great job with day-to-day matters, they are rarely equipped to analyze the practice and advise the partners on financial matters.

The problem that I often see developing from this situation is that if the financial end of the practice is not adequately managed, small problems become big ones and ultimately the practice is not able to maximize its ability to serve its clients, regardless of the good intentions of the partners.

So I recommend a few simple steps that I believe will pay back the relatively small cost in time and expenses many times over.

First, if you don’t have a person in house who is capable of preparing financial statements, contract it out to a competent CPA. The statements should include an Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Statement. They should be reviewed at least quarterly, but monthly is ideal, especially if it is a medium to large law firm.

Secondly, pay your CPA to take the initiative to schedule the regular meeting at which you will review the statements together. Also, pay this CPA to critique what they see. What looks out of place to them? How would an outsider (e.g., a bank) view these statements? What expenses look too high? Where is most of the cash in the firm going? That’s the discussion you need to be having.

I guarantee this will be painful at first but you will learn a lot about your practice and will be able to spot small problems before they become large. You’ll see exactly where your strengths and weaknesses are financially and will be better equipped in the long term to seek justice on behalf of your clients more effectively. You’ll also be able to worry less and concentrate on your cases better knowing that you have put in place a disciplined system of regular financial review. And should you ever decide to seek outside capital, your chances of success will be greater and with lower costs.

You can learn more about this and other law firm finance topics in my book, How David Beats Goliath – Access to Capital for Contingent-Fee Law Firms.

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The above material is excerpted from How David Beats Goliath – Access to Capital for Contingent-Fee Law Firms and is subject to copyright protection © by Michael J. Swanson, all rights reserved.

Photo Credit: FBI Forensic Accountants

Tags: "Contingent Fee Law Firms", "How David Beats Goliath", "Law Firm Finance", Advocate Capital, balance sheet, Case Expense Financing, cash flow statement, CPA, financial statements, how david beats goliath, income statement, Law Firm Finance 101, law practice management, Michael J. Swanson
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Three Key Financial Statements

Wednesday, February 19th, 2014

Watch this episode in the “Business Basics for Trial Lawyers®” video series to learn about the three key financial statements every trial lawyer should know how to read and understand.

If you have any questions or would like to suggest a topic to be covered in future videos, please click here to send me a message or tweet to me at @MichaelJSwanson.

To view a playlist of the Business Basics for Trial Lawyers® video series on YouTube, click here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLmIE0cCmCl45PLAaRs7DNoIFLuV3_BD3K

Tags: "Contingent Fee Law Firms", "How David Beats Goliath", "Law Firm Finance", accounting basics, assets, balance sheet, business basics, Business Basics for Trial Lawyers, Case Expense Financing, cash flow statement, equity, income statement, law practice management, liabilities, Michael J. Swanson, net income, profit
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