Tip #281 - Use Automated Procedure to Enter Default Administrative Case Cost

Many firms charge a standard “Administrative Fee” for all cases. It is typically a case expense passed on to the client and recovered at settlement. Some firms assess a fixed amount for the duration of the case while others may assess periodic amounts on a stated interval (e.g., $10 monthly). In either case, the amount can be entered manually on the Case Expenses/ Disbursements Page of SmartAdvocate. Since the amount is typically fixed (whether it is a one-time assessment or a fixed amount entered periodically) you may want to have the amounts entered automatically using an Automated Procedure (AP), rather than have the staff enter the amount manually.

How To Set Up An AP To Have A Fixed Amount Entered Once:

Go to Admin > Automated Procedure Management

Click the “Add New Procedure” button (top left of the page).
Give the Procedure a name (e.g., “Standard Administrative Case Expense”). In our example, we will apply this standard expense across the board to all cases, so we will not use a “Scope” to limit which cases this fee applies to. If there are some exceptions in your firm, you may want to consider one or more Scope as appropriate (e.g., have the AP apply to only a certain Case Type).
Select a “Trigger”, i.e., what activates the AP. In our example we will use “Case Status Date” as the Trigger and the specific status that will activate the Procedure will be “Retainer Received.” So, when the status of a case is changed to “Retainer Received” the AP will fire.

Next, we will add the action. Click the “Add New Action” button.
Choose Case Expense (Disbursement) as the Action Type.

Add additional (optional) text to the Action Name if desired.
Leave the “Action Start” and “Action Repeat” sections blank (in our example this expense will be added to the case automatically when the status has been changed to Retainer Received).
Enter the amount of the “Administrative Case Cost” in the Amount field and select the Disbursement/Case Expense Type from the drop-down list.
Select an appropriate status from the “Check Status” list, such as “Paid” or “Approved.”
Click the “Save” button to save the AP.
To activate the AP, right-click on the name and select “Enable Procedure.”

How To Set Up An AP To Have A Fixed Monthly Amount Entered Over The Life Of The Case:

This procedure is similar to the steps shown above, except the entry will repeat each month with a smaller monthly amount.

Follow steps 1 thru 7 above.

Steps 8 and 9 will be different since you will need to activate the repeat function. Let’s pick up at step 8 here . . .

Leave the “Action Start” field blank, but enter 30 in the “Days” field for Action Repeat.
Enter the monthly expense amount (e.g., $10) in the “Amount” field.

Continue from step 10 above.