Starting a Law Practice? Get Your Books Right From Day One.

Leaving a firm to go solo, or opening your own practice from the start, comes with a a myriad of decisions. Your financial systems shouldn't be an afterthought that you need to fix before your first tax filing. Balanced Law Books helps attorneys set up compliant, sustainable bookkeeping from the very start, so you can focus on building your practice instead of untangling your books later.

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What "Starting Right" Actually Looks Like

Most new solo attorneys don't realize how much of their financial setup is governed by bar rules, especially when it comes to client funds. Get it wrong, and you're not just facing a bookkeeping headache, you're facing real compliance risk. Balanced Law Books helps you avoid that from the outset.

IOLTA Account Setup

Balanced Law Books will help you open and structure your IOLTA trust account correctly from the beginning to meet ABA and California Bar Association requirements, with a clean system for three-way reconciliation before you ever touch client funds.

Practice Management Software Selection & Setup

Choosing between Clio, MyCase, or another platform can be overwhelming when you're also trying to open your doors. Balanced Law Books will help you evaluate what fits your practice area and budget, then handle the setup, including connecting it properly to your accounting software so client billing and trust transactions flow correctly from day one.

A cozy living room with a round wooden table, a book and two glasses of water on it, beside a black chair. In the background, there's a sofa with a blanket, and built-in shelves with decorative vases and books. Large windows let in natural light.

QuickBooks Online Setup

A generic chart of accounts doesn't work for a law firm. Balanced Law Books will build yours specifically to separate operating funds from trust funds, track client costs correctly, and give you reporting that makes sense for a legal practice.

Financial Systems & Workflow Setup

Invoicing workflows, expense tracking, retainer management, payroll readiness — Balanced Law Books will help you put the basic financial infrastructure in place so nothing falls through the cracks as your caseload grows.

Why This Matters More for Attorneys Than Other Small Businesses

Unlike most new small business owners, attorneys carry an added layer of risk: mishandling client funds, even unintentionally, can mean a bar complaint. A bookkeeper who understands trust accounting isn't a nice-to-have for your practice. It's part of your risk management.

Ready to start your practice?

Please submit the form to facilitate a review of your bookkeeping requirements and to determine the optimal solutions for your firm.

Balanced Law Books serves law practices in the greater Bay Area, and virtually anywhere in the US. Serving clients in the following areas and beyond:


Sausalito
Mill Valley
Corte Madera
Novato
Petaluma
Santa Rosa


San Francisco
Berkeley
Oakland
Walnut Creek
Pleasanton
Fremont
Dublin


Concord
San Mateo
Burlingame
Palo Alto
Mountain View
Santa Clara
San Jose