Inviting Users and Assigning Roles in LeanLaw

This guide covers everything you need to set up and manage the people in your LeanLaw account — inviting team members, assigning the right roles and permissions, setting billing rates, and managing user status over time.

📋 Who can do this: You must have access to Firm Setup in Settings (Firm Manager or Principal role). If you don't, ask a Firm Manager to perform these steps.

Where to Manage Users

All user management happens in Settings → Users (click the gear icon ⚙️ in the top-right corner, then select Users from the left-hand menu).

Users are organized into two tabs:

Active Users — Users who currently have access to LeanLaw
Inactive Users — Users who have been disabled

Click any user's name to open their slide-in profile panel on the right side of the screen.

Inviting a New User

Click the gear icon ⚙️ to open Settings.
Select Users from the left-hand menu.
Click the green Invite User button. (To add an external accountant, click Add Accounting Partner instead.)
Fill out the Invite User form (see fields below).
Click Add User and Send Invite. The user will receive an email to complete their account setup.

💡 Subscription note: Your LeanLaw subscription adjusts automatically when you add users and the payment method on file is charged at the same time. Both monthly and annual subscriptions are prorated based on the remaining billing term.

Invite User Fields Reference

Field	Description
Email	Where the invite is sent and what the user logs in with
First / Last Name	Used on time entries, fees, and expenses throughout LeanLaw
Name / Initials for Invoicing	Appears on client invoices (optional)
Initials for LEDES	Required if your firm uses LEDES billing format
Invoice Class	Set if your firm uses class tracking in QuickBooks Online
Distribution Category	Override the firm-level default distribution if needed
Role	Determines access level — see Role Descriptions below
Access to Firm Setup	Grants admin-level Settings access (use carefully - typically enabled for Principals and Operators only)
Include on all matters	Gives access to every matter in the firm — recommended for Principals, Operators, and Accountants. Having this disabled will prevent matters from showing in dropdowns throughout the product.
Standard Rate	Default billing rate. ALWAYS set this — blank defaults to $0.00 and will create unbillable entries

User Roles & Permissions

LeanLaw uses roles to control what each team member can see and do. Assign roles carefully during initial setup to protect data access and billing accuracy.

Role	Access & Capabilities
Principal	Full access including firm-wide settings, billing, reporting, and user management. Suitable for firm owners and managing partners.
Operator	Administrative access to billing and matters. Cannot access firm-level Settings. Suitable for office managers and billing administrators.
Timekeeper	Can enter and manage time on matters they are assigned to. Suitable for attorneys and paralegals with no billing admin responsibilities.
Accountant	Billing and financial access. Cannot enter time against client matters. Suitable for in-house accounting staff.
Accounting Partner	External accountant access to billing-related data. Not billed as a user. Cannot bill time against clients or matters.

💡 Best practice: Assign the most restrictive role that still allows the user to complete their work. Use 'Include on all matters' only for roles that genuinely need firm-wide matter access (Principals, Operators, Accountants).

The User Profile Panel

Click any user to open their profile in a slide-in panel on the right. Settings are organized into three tabs:

Tab	What You Can Do Here
Details	Update name, email, role, and permissions. This is also where you adjust access to Firm Setup.
Rates	Set or update the user's standard billing rate. See: How to Set and Adjust Rates.
Advanced	Disable or re-invite the user; access class/distribution settings, lead settings (if enabled), and custom fields.

Managing User Status

Disable a User

Open the user's profile in Settings → Users.
Go to the Advanced tab.
Select the option to disable the user.

Disabled users move to the Inactive Users tab. Their historical data is preserved.

Re-Invite a User

If a user did not receive their invitation email or needs to be re-invited:

Open their profile in Settings → Users.
Go to the Advanced tab.
Select the Re-Invite option.

📋 Note: If a user's email address needs to be changed, contact LeanLaw Support — this cannot be self-served within the product.

Custom Fields for Users

LeanLaw supports user-level custom fields for tracking firm-specific data. Three field types are supported: Dropdown, Number, and Text.

Find custom fields under the Advanced tab in any user's profile. You can also bulk-edit custom field values across multiple users from the custom fields table view — useful for updating budget allocations, employment type, or other firm-specific metadata at scale.

Best Practices

Review Inactive Users regularly to avoid unnecessary billing charges
Set a Standard Rate for every billable user during initial setup — never leave it at $0.00 unless intentional
Assign the most restrictive role that still meets the user's workflow needs
Use the 'Include on all matters' setting carefully for roles with broad access