Version 1.5 of CosmoLex brings our subscribers a number of new features, but one of the most useful is the automatic audit log. This display shows a list of which law practice management software users performed which activities and when, so you can easily produce an audit report in case a mistake is made.

To view the audit log, click on Activities. You’ll find the log on the Recent Activities tab, which is the default display on this screen. You can sort by activity, item, client, matter, user or date/time by clicking on the labels at the top of each column. If you need to, you can use the dropdown menu at the top to filter the display to show only matter, invoice, time/expense card, transaction or statement activities.

Audits Happen

Attorneys are subject to greater scrutiny than professionals in most industries, and that means they need to be prepared to record their actions carefully. Fee disputes or ethics complaints can devastate an attorney’s credibility if there is no information to back up the practice’s activities.

When a mistake is made — and mistakes will be made since we are all only human — CosmoLex’s automatic audit log provides objective documentation of when an activity occurred and who performed the action. The timing of an activity can be important to show that, say, an invoice was sent out in timely fashion. When mistakes occur, they can be traced to the particular user. If one person seems to be making the bulk of the errors then perhaps that person needs some extra training…or an invitation to seek employment elsewhere.

You Need This Protection

Solo practices are not immune to the need for an audit log. If you have an outside bookkeeper who uses your legal billing program it allows you to ensure the billing is being done correctly and in a timely fashion. Even if you are the only person who touches your billing, you still may need to know when you performed an activity or verify you did something correctly.

Don’t think that, as an honest attorney, you aren’t in need of an audit trail. You know you are trustworthy, but you might have to prove that to a judge or your bar association. Manual logs are sloppy and easy to overlook, which is why you need an automatic audit feature.

Automatic audit logging is just one of the features you’ll find in version 1.5 of CosmoLex law firm billing software. To start using these new capabilities, just log into your account and you will be using version 1.5 right away.