Law firm

Matters and case management (stages, parties, tasks, documents), time and costs, billing a matter in one step, the client (trust) account kept matter by matter, a court diary with reminders, the conflict check log and the advocate compliance register.

Getting started

Law firm is an add-on module. Your account owner adds it from Settings, then Modules.

1. Open Law firm, then Law firm settings. Choose how time is rounded, the VAT on fees and the client account bank account. Only an admin sees this page.
2. Under Rates for each person, give each advocate a title, the rate they are Billed at, per hour and what they Cost the firm, per hour.
3. Open Matters and press Conflict check to search the names involved before taking on new work.
4. Press New matter, fill it in and press Open matter.
5. Record time and costs on the matter, then use Bill this matter to make the invoice.

To open matters, move cases on, add parties and tasks, record time and record client money, your role needs to be able to enter documents. Write-offs and voids need a role that can approve.

How to

Track court and registry work on your phone

1. Pair your phone from Account → Mifumo app and open Court (under More, in Work).
2. Diary shows today's hearings and deadlines, with the next one on top, and your matters. Tap Directions, Uber or Bolt to get there.
3. When you arrive within 50 m of a court or registry, the app offers to start the timer on that matter. Or press Start timer on a hearing or matter, or open Timer, pick the matter and press Start session.
4. While the timer runs, a green bar across the top of every tab shows the time and what it is worth so far; tap it to open the timer. When you leave, press and hold Hold to stop and save. The time goes on the matter as unbilled work, with the venue it was recorded at.
5. On Fees, enter a fee you paid for the client, its receipt number and a photo of the receipt, then press Save. It is recorded as a cost, billed at cost without VAT.

If your court is not recognised, tap the green place pill on Timer and choose Tag this venue. The place (not your matter or client) is added to the list every firm on Mifumo uses.

Run a conflict check

1. Open Law firm, then Matters, and press Conflict check.
2. In Names, separated by commas, type the would-be client, the other side, guarantors and directors.
3. Press Check.

Every client and contact, and the parties on every matter, are searched. Red marks the serious matches: a name that is already your client, or is on the other side of one of your matters. A match is a lead to check, not a ruling. Opening a matter also runs the check, and what is found stays on the file.

Record the decision on a conflict check

1. Run the check. If you can approve, Record decision appears under the result. Otherwise a partner opens Conflict check log and chooses Decision not recorded under Show.
2. Choose the Decision: No conflict, Go ahead with consent or Declined.
3. Type a Note. It is required for consent (who consented and how) and for a decline, and when something serious was found.
4. Press Record decision.

A decision can't be changed once recorded. Run a new check if the facts change.

See the conflict check log

1. Open Law firm, then Conflict check, and press Conflict check log.
2. Choose the dates and what to Show, and press Show.
3. Press Download CSV or Print for your records or an inspection.

Every search is kept: from the conflict check page, from the Mifumo app, and the check that runs when a matter is opened. Each row shows who searched, the names, what was found at that moment and the decision. Searching the same names again within 10 minutes updates the same row.

Open a new matter

1. Open Matters and press New matter.
2. Fill in Title and choose the Client. For a new client, leave it on A new client (type the name) and type their name and phone.
3. Add Our file reference, Practice area, Advocate in charge and Opened on.
4. For court work, add Court or tribunal, Case number, Opposing party, Opposing advocate and Other parties.
5. Choose Billing: By the hour, Fixed fee or Not billed (pro bono or internal). For hourly work you can set an Hourly rate for this matter; leave it blank to use each person's own rate.
6. Set Budget or estimate if you want one, and VAT on fees.
7. Press Open matter.

Move a case to its next stage

1. Open the matter and its Case tab.
2. Under Stage, choose the stage in Move to and type a Note if you want one.
3. Press Move stage.

A new matter starts at the first stage. Each move is kept under Stage with who made it and when. The stages are yours to set in Law firm settings.

See every case by stage

1. Open Law firm, then Case board.
2. Each column is a stage, with every open matter at it, its next court date and its tasks. Press Mine to see only the matters you are in charge of.
3. Press a matter to open its Case tab.

Tasks to do under the board lists every open task, soonest first. Press Done when one is finished.

Add the parties to a case

1. Open the matter and its Case tab.
2. Under Parties, type the Name and choose the Role: Opposing party, Co-party (our side), Opposing advocate, Witness, Expert, Guarantor or director, Judge or magistrate, or Other.
3. Add who they are Represented by, their Phone, Email and a Note, and press Add party.

The conflict check searches these names. A match on an opposing party or opposing advocate is marked as serious.

Add a task to a matter

1. Open the matter and its Case tab.
2. Under Tasks, type What has to be done, choose the Due date and Who does it. Leave Who on The advocate in charge to give it to them.
3. Press Add task.

Whoever does the task is reminded on the morning it is due, in the notification center and by email, and once more if it becomes overdue. Press Done when it is finished, or Edit to change it. Only whoever added a task, or someone who can approve, can delete it.

Keep documents and notes on a matter

1. Open the matter and its Documents tab.
2. Under Attachments, choose the Type (for example Pleading or submission, Evidence or exhibit, or Court order, ruling or judgment) and choose the files. PDF, images, Word, Excel, CSV and text files up to 10 MB each.
3. Under Chatter, write a note for the team. Type @ to tag a colleague.

Record time on a matter

1. Open the matter and stay on the Time tab, or open Law firm, then Time, and choose the Matter.
2. Enter the Date and the Time as 1:30 or 1.5.
3. Type What was done. This is shown on the client's bill.
4. Leave Billable ticked for work the client pays for, and press Add time.

Time is rounded up to the units set in Law firm settings. On a matter not billed by the hour, time is kept at cost only. You can edit or delete your own time until it is billed.

Use the timer

1. On the matter's Time tab, type what you are doing in Or start a timer for and press Start timer. On the Time page, press Start timer instead.
2. A bar shows the running timer on every law firm page.
3. Press Stop timer when you finish. The time is recorded on the matter.

You can only have one timer running at a time.

Record a cost paid for the client

1. Open the matter and choose the Costs tab.
2. Under Record a cost paid from the office account, enter the Date, What it was for (for example a filing fee), the Amount, Paid from and the Receipt no.
3. Leave Bill to the client ticked if the client should pay it back.
4. Press Record cost.

For money paid out of the client's own funds in the client account, use the Client account tab instead.

Bill a matter

1. Open the matter and open Bill this matter.
2. Choose Work up to and the Invoice date.
3. For a fixed fee matter, enter the Fixed fee to bill now. The amount left on the fee is shown.
4. Press Make draft invoice.

Unbilled time, the fixed fee part and costs become one draft invoice in Sales. Fees carry the matter's VAT; costs paid for the client are billed at what they cost, without VAT. Voiding the invoice puts everything back to unbilled. The Invoices tab lists every invoice on the matter.

Hold client money in the client account

1. Open the matter and choose the Client account tab.
2. Under Money received from or for the client, enter the Date, Amount, Reference (bank slip or M-Pesa code) and what it is For. Press Record money in.
3. To pay a court or a seller, or return money to the client, use Pay out for the client, or return money to them. Fill in Paid to, the amount and reference, and press Record money out.
4. To pay a billed invoice from the client's money, use Pay an invoice from the client's money, choose the Invoice, the amount and the office account it Moves to, and press Apply to invoice.

A matter can never go below nil. After applying money to an invoice, move the same amount from the client bank account to the office account. The Client ledger shows every movement and the balance.

Check the client account agrees

1. Open Law firm, then Client account.
2. Look at Check. It says Agrees when the matters' ledgers, what is owed to clients in the books and the client bank account all match.
3. Reconcile the client bank account against the bank statement under Banking and Payments as usual.

If it says Differs, something was posted to these accounts outside the client account pages.

Reconcile the client account each month

1. Import the client bank account's statement under Banking and Payments and match it, so items not yet through the bank are known.
2. Open Law firm, then Client account, and choose Reconcile.
3. Choose the date (the last day of the month). The statement balance comes from the imported statement; if you didn't import it, type the balance from the paper statement.
4. Check the result. All agree means the adjusted statement, the client bank account in the books, what the books owe clients and the sum of the matter ledgers are the same.
5. Add notes if anything differs (they are required then), and choose Save reconciliation.
6. A partner opens it and chooses Sign off. Print it or download the CSV for your records or an inspection.

A saved reconciliation keeps its figures and each client's balance as they were. A signed-off one can't be deleted; if something changes, save a new one for the same date.

Print the client account book

1. Open Law firm, then Client account, and choose Client account book.
2. Choose the dates and Show. Every movement is listed with the matter, the payer or payee and a running balance, starting from the balance brought forward.
3. Choose Print or Download CSV.

Add a hearing or deadline to the court diary

1. Open Law firm, then Court diary, and open Add to the diary. Or open the matter's Diary tab and open Add a hearing or deadline.
2. Choose the Matter and What: Hearing, Mention, Ruling or judgment, Filing deadline, Mediation, Meeting or Other.
3. Enter the Date, Time, Where, Judge or officer and Who attends. Leave Who attends empty for the advocate in charge.
4. Choose when to Remind them, add a Note and press Add to diary.

Press Calendar on any item to add it to your phone or Outlook calendar.

Record what happened at a hearing

1. Open Court diary. Past dates without an outcome are listed under Outcome not recorded.
2. Press Record outcome and choose Done, Adjourned or Cancelled.
3. For an adjournment, give the new date and time.
4. Type what happened and press Save.

An adjournment goes into the diary on the new date with the same court, judge and person.

Add an advocate to the register

1. Open Law firm, then Advocate register, and open Add an advocate.
2. Choose them From your team, or leave it on Not on Mifumo and type the Name.
3. Enter the Roll number and the date Admitted to the roll on, and press Add to register.

An advocate chosen from your team gets their own renewal reminders. Admins get every reminder.

Record a practising certificate and TLS subscription

1. Open the advocate from Advocate register and open Record the practising certificate.
2. Check the Year, then enter the Certificate number and Issued on.
3. Enter the Registrar's fee and any Late penalty. The 2015 fee for their years in practice is shown as a hint.
4. Enter TLS subscription paid on, the TLS receipt and TLS amount, and press Save certificate.

Saving the same year again corrects it. The fees are kept on the register only; record the payment itself under Banking and Payments or Purchases.

Add CLE points

1. Open the advocate and open Add CLE points.
2. Enter the Date, the Activity, the Provider and the Points (for example 2 or 1.5).
3. Press Add points.

Renewing a certificate needs 10 CLE points from the year before. Points over 10, up to 3, carry into the next year, but not more than 2 years in a row. Year by year shows what was earned, carried in and the total for each year.

Get renewal and CLE reminders

Reminders go out by themselves, in the notification center and by email:

• From 2 January, and each Monday in January, for every advocate with no practising certificate recorded for the year.
• On 1 and 15 December, for every advocate short of 10 CLE points for the year.

They go to the advocate when they are on your team, and to your admins. Turn the email on or off under Court diary and practising certificates in the notification center.

Print the advocate register

1. Open Law firm, then Advocate register.
2. Choose the Year and press Show. Tick Show advocates who have left to include them.
3. Press Print or Download CSV.

Put a matter on hold or close it

1. Open the matter.
2. Press Put on hold to pause it, or Reopen to make it open again.
3. Press Close matter when the work is done.

Before closing, bill or write off the time and costs not yet billed, stop any timer on the matter, and pay out or return any client money still held.

Settings

Open Law firm, then Law firm settings.

• Round time up to: Exact minutes, 6 minutes (a tenth of an hour), 10 minutes or 15 minutes (a quarter of an hour).
• VAT on fees for new matters: the VAT each new matter starts with. You can change it on the matter.
• Default hourly rate: for anyone without their own rate.
• Default cost of an hour: salary and overheads per hour, used for profit when a person has no cost rate.
• Client account (trust) bank account: where client money is kept. Mifumo makes one for you; rename it to match your bank, or choose another.
• Stages of a case: one stage per line, in order. A new matter starts at the first one. Renaming or removing a stage leaves matters already at it where they are, marked as an old stage on the case board until you move them.
• Rates for each person: each person's title, the rate they are billed at and what they cost the firm per hour.

A matter's own hourly rate, when it has one, comes before the person's rate.

Questions

Which rules does the advocate register follow?

The practising certificate is renewed every year with the Registrar of the High Court, with the TLS subscription (Advocates Act, Cap. 341). Renewal needs 10 CLE points from the year before, and up to 3 points carry over (TLS CLE Regulations, GN 601/2022). The fee hint uses the 2015 rates: TSh 50,000 under 5 years in practice and TSh 100,000 at 5 years or more. Check current amounts with the Registrar.

What is the difference between a cost and a client account payment?

A cost is paid from the firm's own office account and billed back to the client. A client account payment is paid from money the client has already given you and held for them.

Why can't I close a matter?

A matter can only close once its time and costs are billed or written off, no timer is running on it, and no client money is still held for it.

Where do I see work not yet billed?

Open Law firm, then Reports. Work not yet billed lists each matter with its hours, time and costs. The same page shows Profit per matter and Time by person.

Can I write off time instead of billing it?

Yes, with a role that can approve. Press Write off on the time or cost on the matter. For time, press Bill it to undo the write-off.

Help guides

• Getting started: Sign up, set up your company with its TIN and VRN, choose your modules, invite your team and get Mifumo on your phone.
• Team, roles and permissions: Add users, give each one a role per company, build your own roles with the permission grid, work together with mentions, and import or export spreadsheets.
• Approvals: Maker-checker on the documents you choose. People who can't approve submit, an approver posts or sends back with a reason, and nothing reaches the books before approval.
• Sign-in and security: Passwords, passkeys, two-step sign-in with an authenticator app, a text message or email, recovery codes, requiring two-step sign-in for everyone, and staying signed in.
• Group of companies: Run several companies under one login, give people a group role in every company, record intercompany entries once, and read consolidated reports with intercompany balances taken out.
• Accounting: Your books in one place. Invoices, receipts, bills, expenses, banking, journals, VAT returns and financial statements, all posting to one double-entry ledger in TSh.
• Inventory: Stock products, warehouses, adjustments, transfers and stock counts with a barcode scanner, landed cost on imports, purchase and sales orders, the point of sale till, and stock reports.
• HR and payroll: Employees, monthly payroll with PAYE, NSSF, SDL, WCF and HESLB worked out for you, payslips, salary advances, per diem, leave, staff attendance by phone with GPS or QR, a shift roster, and final dues for leavers.
• CRM: Leads, a drag-and-drop pipeline of deals, follow-ups, quotes from deals, a full customer timeline, SMS and email campaigns, and your own mailbox synced in.
• Asset management: Keep a fixed asset register, charge depreciation, track who has each asset, and record disposals with the right journal entries.
• Project management: Projects with their team, tasks, board and timeline, time logged on timesheets, milestone and time invoices, and the margin of every project.
• FTTx projects: Track fibre roll-out purchase orders from your clients, the work you pass to subcontractors, and the money in and out on each PO.
• Transport jobs: Record each cargo trip with its trucks, drivers and deliveries, attach the proof of delivery, see the margin on every delivery, and turn the job into an invoice.
• Construction: Run each building contract with its bill of quantities, interim payment certificates, advances, retention, completion certificates and site costs.
• Manufacturing: Write recipes for what you make, plan production runs, issue materials from stock and put finished goods into stock at what they really cost.
• Pharmacy: Counter dispensing with patient and prescription details, medicines with TMDA numbers, first-expiry-first-out batches, expiry write-offs and the prescription register.
• Motor vehicles: Sell imported vehicles from proforma to invoice, complete and approve the internal Sale Sheet, take instalment payments, and pay sales commissions.
• Property management: Properties and units, tenants, leases and rent billed as invoices, arrears, repairs and statements for owners you manage for.
• Law firm: Matters and case management (stages, parties, tasks, documents), time and costs, billing a matter in one step, the client (trust) account kept matter by matter, a court diary with reminders, the conflict check log and the advocate compliance register.
• Livestock: A register of every animal or batch of birds, with health records, withdrawal periods, breeding and births, milk and eggs, and sales invoiced to the buyer.
• Helpdesk: Customer problems and requests as numbered tickets, each with someone in charge, deadlines to answer and to solve, replies by email and internal notes.
• Mining: Run each mine as a project, record the money it receives, see spending against those funds, and get a profit and loss for every mine and for the company.
• Field Service: Jobs your technicians do at the customer's site, each with a time slot, a checklist, the parts used from stock, the hours worked, the customer's signature on the phone, and an invoice from the job.
• Hospital: Patients, appointments and the queue from triage to the doctor, the lab, the pharmacy and the cashier. Wards with admissions, bed days and deposits, the theatre list and imaging. Bills split between the patient and their insurer, with claims and reports. The Pharmacy module is included.
• Sign: Send a contract, lease or offer letter to be signed by link, on a phone or computer, and keep the signed copy with a record of who signed, when and from where.
• Event ticketing: Set up an event with its ticket types, publish it after paying a one-off fee, and sell tickets from your own sale page. Buyers pay you by Lipa Namba or online, and get QR tickets by SMS and email. Ticket money goes straight to you, never to Mifumo.