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firm:sop:trust-accounting [2025/10/30 14:34] – created adminfirm:sop:trust-accounting [2025/11/03 13:58] (current) – [Withdrawals] admin
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   - If a client insists on paying into trust with cash or a check, they are no longer a client of this firm.   - If a client insists on paying into trust with cash or a check, they are no longer a client of this firm.
   - __Valid__ forms of payment to trust are: e-transfer; wire transfer; certified check; or (last resort) credit card.   - __Valid__ forms of payment to trust are: e-transfer; wire transfer; certified check; or (last resort) credit card.
 +
 +==== Record keeping ====
 +
 +Trust record keeping displaces all other work. If trust record keeping becomes difficult or is in any way interrupted by other work, that other work takes a lesser priority.
 +
 +Trust record keeping __must be completed immediately before or after__ a trust transaction is completed.
 +
 +All trust accounting documents must be uploaded to [[https://paper.apstrom.ca|Paperless]]. We do not keep paper records; records are maintained in Paperless.
 +
 +If a document must be scanned, it must subsequently be uploaded to Paperless.
 +
 +When a trust accounting document is uploaded to Paperless, it must assigned the following attributes:
 +  * Document type: __Trust accounting__
 +  * Tags: __trust document__
 +  * Correspondents: __A.P.Strom & Associates__
 +
 +These tags will enable quick recall of documents and full-text search of our trust accounting documents.
 +
 +ID verifications must be uploaded to Paperless and assigned the following attributes:
 +  * Document type: __ID verification__
 +  * Tags: __ID__, __FIRM-ADMIN__
 +  * Correspondents: __Treefort__
 +
 +--> Any trust or ID document that relates to a client or a matter must be __tagged__ with the client number or matter number, as the case may be.
 +
 +===== Daily transactions =====
 +
 +All transactions that add or remove funds from a trust account must be recorded, with all records being duplicated into and saved in Paperless.
 +
 +==== Transaction entry ====
 +
 +All trust transactions must be entered in Cosmolex and accompanied by the required documentation, even errors that must be reversed with further transactions.
 +
 +==== Deposits ====
 +
 +Three types of deposit to trust are available to clients. The first and most prevalent is an electronic funds transfer, either by e-transfer or wire. The second is a credit card payment to trust. The third is certified funds in the form of a bank draft or certified check.
 +
 +All methods of payment require a deposit slip, which must be created in Cosmolex, downloaded from Cosmolex, and saved into Paperless. 
 +
 +Deposits must be routed to the correct account. The deposit slip must be cross-checked with the account to ensure that funds are being properly deposited.
 +
 +Once a deposit slip is entered in Cosmolex, it must be downloaded, initialled or signed by the person who created the slip, and uploaded to Paperless.
 +
 +If a deposit is made by credit card payment or certified funds, the following must appear on or be appended to the deposit slip before it is uploaded to Paperless:
 +
 +  * a credit card transaction reference number generated by LawPay;
 +  * a scanned image of the bank draft or certified check; or
 +  * a scanned image of the bank deposit slip signed by the teller and initialled by the person responsible for making the deposit.
 +
 +==== Withdrawals ====
 +
 +Any withdrawal of funds from Cosmolex must be documented with a requisition to draw on trust funds, a copy of any relevant instrument used to draw on trust funds (i.e. a check or certified funds), and any other supporting documentation that defines the amount to be drawn or the authority under which it is drawn.
 +
 +=== Requisition to draw on trust funds ===
 +
 +A requisition to draw on trust funds is obtained by using the following procedure:
 +
 +  - confirm the value to be drawn with the lawyer responsible for the transaction;
 +  - create a Cosmolex entry for the draw with the correct value from the correct client matter;
 +  - confirm that the Cosmolex entry is accurate in all respects; 
 +  - download a requisition to draw on trust funds for the transaction from Cosmolex;
 +  - verify that the requisition is correct in all respects;
 +  - convert the requisition to PDF;
 +  - sign the PDF as the person who prepared the transaction;
 +  - obtain the lawyer's signature on the requisition; 
 +  - prepare the instrument required for the transaction (bank transfer, wire transfer, check, etc.); 
 +  - scan any paper instruments to PDF;
 +  - complete the transaction;
 +  - note the electronic transfer or check details on the requisition and append PDF images or wire confirmation as necessary;
 +  - combine the signed requisition with the PDF images or wire confirmation or, if applicable, with a copy of the invoice being paid from trust; and
 +  - file the combined requisition in Paperless.
 +
 +These steps ensure that all withdrawals of trust funds can be tracked and accounted for as necessary.
 +
 +If a situation arises in which a document other than a scanned check image or wire transfer confirmation is relevant to the transaction, err on the side of caution: append the document to the requisition and file in Paperless.
  
 ===== Monthly reconciliations ===== ===== Monthly reconciliations =====
  
  

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