Settlement Calculator — Known Limitations and FAQ
Current limitations of the Settlement Calculator, Lien Management, and Overview Dashboard features.
Settlement Calculator Limitations
| Limitation | Details | Workaround |
|---|---|---|
| No interest on expenses | The calculator does not compute or add interest accrued on advanced expenses. If your fee agreement includes interest on costs advanced, you must calculate this manually and add it as a separate expense line item before running the wizard. | Add a manual expense entry for the interest amount before starting the wizard. |
| No tax calculations | The settlement calculator does not apply sales tax, withholding, or any other tax to fees or disbursements. Tax treatment varies by jurisdiction and is not automated. | Consult your tax advisor and handle tax obligations outside the settlement statement. |
| No mid-wizard staleness detection | If someone modifies expenses, trust deposits, or lien data while you are mid-wizard, the wizard will not warn you. Each step uses a snapshot of data at the time it was confirmed. | Complete the wizard in a single session when possible. If data changed, Unlock & Reset and re-run. |
| No email from the settlement page | You cannot email the settlement statement to the client directly from LeanLaw. | Download the PDF and email it using your normal email workflow. |
| No auto-generated lien checks | The wizard does not automatically create trust checks for lien payments in QBO. | Write trust checks manually in LeanLaw/QBO after the client signs the statement, or use the Liens tab payment workflow (see below). |
| Statement is frozen | The generated PDF is a point-in-time snapshot. It will not update if you later change expenses, liens, or other data. | Unlock & Reset and regenerate if corrections are needed. |
Lien Management Limitations
| Limitation | Details | Workaround |
|---|---|---|
| Cannot push lien payments to QBO directly (MVP) | In the initial release, lien records do not auto-generate trust checks in QuickBooks Online. QBO check automation is planned but not available in MVP. | Record lien payments manually in QBO using the existing trust disbursement workflow. See How to Disburse Funds from Trust. |
| No cross-matter lien dashboard | You can only view liens on a per-matter basis. There is no firm-wide view of all liens across active matters. | Use Metabase/reporting for aggregate lien visibility (coming soon). |
| Manual data entry only | Liens must be entered manually. There is no automated intake from external documents, emails, or case management systems. | Enter liens as you receive notices throughout the case. |
| No government lien compliance automation | Medicare/Medicaid liens do not have automated deadline tracking or MSPA reporting. | Track government lien deadlines manually and consult compliance counsel. |
| No lien deadline alerts | No automated alerts for state-specific hospital lien filing deadlines. | Set calendar reminders outside LeanLaw for critical lien deadlines. |
| Lien types are fixed | You cannot add custom lien types. Available types: Medical Provider, Insurance Subrogation, Government (Medicare/Medicaid), Letter of Protection, Other. | Use “Other” for lien types that don’t fit the predefined categories. |
Contingency Analytics Dashboard Limitations
| Limitation | Details | Workaround |
|---|---|---|
| Read-only | The dashboard is view-only. You cannot edit data, create invoices, or take actions from the dashboard. | Navigate to the relevant matter/invoice/fee to take action. |
| Forecast tab not yet available | The Forecast tab (projected settlements, projected revenue by quarter) is coming soon. It requires expected settlement dates to be populated on open matters. | Plan to populate expected settlement dates on your open matters now so the Forecast tab is ready when it launches. |
| Data may have slight latency | Dashboard data is sourced from reporting views and may not reflect changes made in the last few minutes. | Refresh the page if you’ve just made changes. Allow a few minutes for data to propagate. |
| No custom alerting | You cannot set threshold alerts (e.g., “notify me when fee recovery drops below 25%”). | Check the dashboard regularly (recommend weekly). |
| Practice area and marketing source must be populated manually | Charts grouped by practice area or marketing source only include cases where those fields are filled in. Unpopulated cases appear as “Unclassified” or “Unknown Source”. | Populate these fields on all contingency matters for complete analytics. Your CSM can assist with bulk data import. |
| Only shows contingency matters | The dashboard is filtered to BillingType = Contingency only. Hourly and flat fee matters do not appear. | Use existing LeanLaw reports for hourly/flat fee analytics. |
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Can I use the Settlement Calculator without Trust Accounting enabled?
A: No. The Settlement tab requires trust accounting to be enabled at the firm level and connected for the specific matter. If trust accounting is not set up, you’ll see a prompt directing you to enable it in firm settings.
Q: What happens if I enter a 0% fee (pro bono case)?
A: This is allowed. The wizard will proceed normally with a $0 attorney fee. An informational message will confirm this is a pro bono case.
Q: Can multiple users work on the same settlement wizard?
A: Yes. Wizard progress is saved server-side. A second user can pick up where the first left off. However, only one user should be active in the wizard at a time — there is no real-time collaboration or conflict detection.
Q: Why is Step 5 (Map Payments) grayed out?
A: Step 5 only applies when the expense arrangement is “Client pays as they go.” If your matter uses “Firm advances” or “Firm absorbs,” Step 5 is automatically skipped but remains visible in the stepper for consistency.
Q: Can I edit the Settlement Statement after it’s generated?
A: No. The statement is a frozen PDF. To make corrections, use Unlock & Reset to return to Step 1, correct the underlying data, and regenerate.
Q: What permissions do I need to see the Settlement tab?
A: You need both (1) create/edit access on clients and matters, AND (2) billing tab access (ability to submit invoices to QBO). If either is missing, the Settlement tab is hidden entirely.
Q: Will the settlement invoice auto-sync to QuickBooks?
A: Yes. The “Bill for Settlement” action creates an invoice that syncs to QBO through LeanLaw’s existing two-way integration.
Q: Is the Contingency Analytics dashboard available on all LeanLaw plans?
A: The Summary, Revenue Analytics, and Velocity tabs are visible to all plans as a preview of the advanced insights suite. Full access (without the preview banner) is part of the Elite plan. Contact your account manager for details.
Q: Why does the Forecast tab say “Coming Soon”?
A: The Forecast tab is planned for a future release. In the meantime, you can start populating expected settlement dates and expected recovery amounts on your open matters so the tab will have data when it launches.