Hey, I’m Kayla. I run a small estate and family law shop in Austin. I also help a friend who manages rentals. So, trust funds touch my week a lot. I’ve made mistakes. I’ve fixed them. And I’ve felt that knot in my stomach when the bar sends a letter. You know what? The right software matters.
By the way, a concise explainer from Cupid Systems helped me visualize how compliant trust workflows should run behind the scenes.
Below is what I used, what broke, and what saved me.
If you’d like the blow-by-blow version with screenshots and spreadsheets, check out my full, step-by-step write-up on testing trust accounting platforms over on Cupid Systems.
Quick outline (so you can skim)
- What I need from trust tools
- Real stories with four tools I used
- A short note on property management trust
- Little gotchas I learned the hard way
- My pick, plus who should pick what
What I Actually Need (and won’t budge on)
Three things keep me calm:
- True three-way reconciliation (bank, trust ledger, client ledgers match)
- Clear matter ledgers with no comingling
- Easy audit trail (who did what, when)
Nice-to-haves that help:
- Fee transfers that don’t let me overdraft a client
- Batch deposits and check printing
- Bank feed that doesn’t go wild
- Trust payment by card or eCheck that keeps fees out of trust
- Simple permissions (new staff can’t mess up trust)
Sounds basic. It isn’t. I learned that fast.
Clio Manage + Clio Payments (LawPay) — My Daily Driver
I’ve used Clio for three years. My trust account sits at a local bank. I take trust by card with Clio Payments (it’s LawPay under the hood). Fees go to operating, not trust. That part works clean. It also integrates tightly with QuickBooks Online for operating-side bookkeeping, so my accountant doesn’t nag me about double entry.
Real moment: last fall I misapplied a $1,500 trust deposit to the wrong matter. I felt sick. In Clio, I moved it with a clear entry and note. The audit trail showed the mistake and the fix. When I ran the three-way report, it still tied out. No late-night panic.
What I like:
- Trust requests by email get paid fast. Clients click, done.
- The trust shortage guard is firm. It refuses to pay fees if the client balance is low.
- Three-way recon is simple. I match the bank feed, then run the report.
What bugs me:
- Check printing isn’t built in. I still print checks from QuickBooks. That’s one extra step.
- Report filters feel stiff. I want more ad-hoc views.
- Batch trust deposits are okay, but not great for many small checks.
Who it fits:
- Small to mid law firms who want practice tools and trust in one place.
- Folks who want card payments that don’t touch trust with fees.
TrustBooks — The “Don’t-Think-Too-Hard” Trust Tool
I picked up TrustBooks for a two-lawyer shop I help part-time. They use MyCase for cases, but wanted a tight trust workflow. TrustBooks does one thing: trust and accounting around it. It’s now part of the MyCase family, and it plays fine with LawPay.
Real moment: we had a bar audit request last March. I ran the client ledgers, the bank recon, and the three-way report in under 10 minutes. The auditor asked for our voided checks log. It was right there. I actually smiled.
What I like:
- Setup is fast. The guardrails are strong.
- The three-way report is clear, and the language is plain.
- It talks to bank feeds without getting “creative.”
What bugs me:
- It’s not a full practice system. You’ll still track tasks and docs elsewhere.
- Reports look a bit dry. That’s fine for me, but the partners love “pretty.”
- User roles are simple, not deep.
Who it fits:
- Small firms that fear audits more than anything.
- Firms that want clean trust without a big switch.
LeanLaw + QuickBooks Online — Great Power, More Care
I ran LeanLaw with QuickBooks Online Advanced for six months at a boutique litigation shop. They lived in QuickBooks already, so this made sense. LeanLaw handled matters, time, and trust rules. QuickBooks carried the books. For a deeper dive into how LeanLaw stacks up against other legal billing tools in a QuickBooks environment, see their comparison of legal billing software for QuickBooks Online.
Real moment: we paid 17 invoices from nine matters using trust in one sweep. LeanLaw handled the trust transfers by matter, then QuickBooks logged each move. It was fast, and it was neat.
What I like:
- Deep QuickBooks control. The accountant was happy.
- Strong invoice-to-trust workflow. Few clicks, solid trail.
- Good for firms that love custom reports.
What bugs me:
- Setup needs care. If you map one account wrong, it hurts.
- QuickBooks lets you do silly things if you try hard. Guardrails aren’t foolproof.
- Training took time. New staff clicked the wrong place… often.
Who it fits:
- Firms already married to QuickBooks.
- Teams with an in-house bookkeeper who likes control.
CosmoLex — All-In-One, No QuickBooks Needed
I used CosmoLex for a contingency matter shop during a busy summer. It has built-in accounting, so no QuickBooks. Trust and operating live under one roof, with checks and cost tracking.
Real moment: we cut six settlement checks and paid liens the same day. I printed checks with the right stub detail. The three-way report tied on the first try. My coffee was still warm.
What I like:
- One system. No double entry.
- Check printing is smooth. So are deposit slips.
- Trust rules are strict in a good way.
What bugs me:
- The screen feels busy. New staff get lost.
- It can feel slower with big matters and long ledgers.
- The mobile feel is… fine, not great.
Who it fits:
- Firms that want one tool for it all.
- Teams that print lots of checks and like built-in books.
A Quick Detour: Property Management Trust (Buildium)
Different field, same stress. I helped a friend with a 32-unit portfolio. Buildium kept security deposits, owner draws, and vendor bills straight.
Real moment: a tenant’s deposit moved to damages, then refunds and owner payouts followed. Buildium tracked each step, so the trust bank and owner ledger matched. No guessing.
Good:
- Bank feeds are stable. Owner statements make sense.
- 1099s and vendor tracking are easy.
Not so good:
- Fees add up with add-ons.
- The first month feels like a class. Then it clicks.
Seeing how Buildium wrangles disparate payers and payees reminded me of the tuition-billing chaos I tackled in my deep dive into three childcare billing apps—the underlying reconciliation headaches are strikingly similar.
Little Gotchas I Learned The Hard Way
- Merchant fees: Make sure card fees never pull from trust. Set fees to hit operating only.
- Short checks: I once paid a filing fee by trust when funds were low. The software blocked it. Good software should.
- Matter merge: Merging matters can orphan trust entries. Do test merges in a sandbox if you can.
- Bank rec notes: I write short notes on each recon. “Check 1042 voided; reissued 11/3.” Auditors love this.
- User roles: New hires get view-only on trust for two weeks. It saves tears.
A lot of these lessons echoed what I found while field-testing scheduling and billing tools for a service company—captured in my post on running a pest-control business with four different apps. Wrong permissions and sloppy mappings will bite any industry.
What I Pay (ballpark, per user, per month)
- Clio Manage: mid to high two digits, tiers vary; payments adds merchant fees
- TrustBooks: single low three-digit range for the firm, size-based
- LeanLaw + QuickBooks Online: each has a fee; together it’s not cheap, but flexible
- CosmoLex: around the high two digits to low three digits, all-in-one
Prices move. I care more about time saved and audit calm.
My Pick, and Who Should Pick What
- My daily pick: Clio + Payments. It’s balanced, and my staff gets it.
- Most stress-free trust: TrustBooks. If audits keep you up, this helps.
- Most control for QuickBooks shops: LeanLaw + QuickBooks.
- Best all-in-one with checks: CosmoLex.
If you’re tiny and nervous, start with TrustBooks. If you want one system, go CosmoLex. If you live in QuickBooks, LeanLaw is smart. If you want broad practice tools