Purchase order software for law firms
Procurer is purchase order software for US law firms with 20 to 300 people, from mid-size litigation boutiques to multi-office regional firms. Partners and associates engage experts, e-discovery vendors, court reporters, process servers and office suppliers, and the invoice often arrives before anyone in accounting knew the work was ordered. Each request is coded to a client matter, approved by the right partner or the firm administrator, and paid only after someone confirms the work was delivered. Pricing is per firm from 149 USD a month.
On this page
- 01What is the best purchase order software for a law firm?
- 02Why law firms lose recoverable costs on unapproved vendor spend
- 03How purchase orders work at a law firm with Procurer
- 04What a law firm uses every week
- 05What Procurer covers for a law firm and what it leaves to other tools
- 06Choose a plan for how your firm buys
- 07A first month for a 60 person firm with three offices
- 08FAQ
What is the best purchase order software for a law firm?
The best purchase order software for a law firm approves a vendor commitment before work starts, codes it to a client matter and office, and holds an invoice that does not match what was agreed. Procurer does that with approval rules, matter and GL budgets, line by line acceptance and bill export to QuickBooks Online or Xero, at a published firm price.
Why law firms lose recoverable costs on unapproved vendor spend
A firm sells hours, so the money that leaks is the cost it advances for clients and the overhead it runs the practice on. The same things go wrong again and again.
- An associate books a forensic expert or a copy vendor on an email thread, and the invoice shows up weeks later with a rate nobody agreed.
- A court reporter or e-discovery provider is hired for a matter, and the cost cannot be tied to the matter number when the bill is prepared, so it is written off or billed late.
- Each office buys supplies, furniture, IT and subscriptions on its own, and the managing partner sees the total only at month end.
- A partner approves their own request because the approval rule is a line in the office manual.
- Large client costs wait on a partner who is in trial, because approvals live in an email inbox.
A purchase order takes two minutes when the form is short and the approver can sign from a phone. It fixes the order of events: approval first, then the commitment, then acceptance of the work, then payment.
How purchase orders work at a law firm with Procurer
1. An associate or legal assistant raises a request, picks the client matter and GL account, attaches the engagement letter or quote and selects the vendor.
2. The request goes to the responsible partner, and above your threshold to the managing partner or the firm administrator. Approvers see the remaining budget on that matter or cost center before deciding.
3. The approved request becomes a PO and goes to the vendor by email as a PDF with the scope, rate and matter reference.
4. When the work is delivered, the requester records acceptance line by line, including partial deliveries such as a transcript in two parts. Accounts payable matches the invoice to the PO and the acceptance, then exports the approved bill to QuickBooks Online or Xero with the matter coding.
Read more about approval workflows and budgets.
What a law firm uses every week
- Matter or cost center budgets with commitments and actuals, on Business and above.
- Approval rules by amount, office, practice group and vendor, so no one approves their own request.
- Engagement letters, quotes and rate sheets attached to the request and kept with the PO.
- Partial receiving for staged work such as transcripts, productions and expert reports.
- Three-way matching of PO, acceptance and invoice on Business, so an invoice above the agreed amount is held for review.
- Unlimited locations on every plan, with a ship-to office on the PO and the PDF.
- A read only audit log of requests, approvals, PO changes and edits with the person, time and previous value.
- Approved bill export to QuickBooks Online and Xero.
What Procurer covers for a law firm and what it leaves to other tools
Procurer controls what the firm buys. It is not legal practice management, and it does not touch client funds. Keep time entry, billing and trust accounting in the systems built for them, and use Procurer for the approved cost that comes back to the matter.
| Need | Procurer | Legal practice management or accounting suite |
|---|---|---|
| Partner approval before an expert, vendor or office purchase | Yes | Rarely |
| PO sent to the vendor with scope, rate and matter reference | Yes | Rarely |
| Matter coded cost and remaining budget | Yes, on Business | Expense entry after the fact |
| Acceptance of work before payment | Yes, line by line | No |
| Invoice matching against PO and acceptance | Yes, three-way on Business | No |
| Time entry, client billing, trust accounting | No | Yes |
| Published firm price | Yes, from 149 USD a month | Usually per user |
- Partner approval before an expert, vendor or office purchase
- ProcurerYesLegal practice management or accounting suiteRarely
- PO sent to the vendor with scope, rate and matter reference
- ProcurerYesLegal practice management or accounting suiteRarely
- Matter coded cost and remaining budget
- ProcurerYes, on BusinessLegal practice management or accounting suiteExpense entry after the fact
- Acceptance of work before payment
- ProcurerYes, line by lineLegal practice management or accounting suiteNo
- Invoice matching against PO and acceptance
- ProcurerYes, three-way on BusinessLegal practice management or accounting suiteNo
- Time entry, client billing, trust accounting
- ProcurerNoLegal practice management or accounting suiteYes
- Published firm price
- ProcurerYes, from 149 USD a monthLegal practice management or accounting suiteUsually per user
Many firms run both. The practice management system owns time and billing. Procurer owns the approved cost, and the bill reaches the ledger already coded.
Choose a plan for how your firm buys
- Team, 149 USD a month or 888 USD yearly: requests, approvals, POs, receiving, department budgets and accounting export for a single firm.
- Business, 299 USD a month or 1 788 USD yearly: matter and GL budgets, conditional approval rules, three-way matching and spend analytics.
- Scale, 699 USD a month or 4 188 USD yearly: up to 300 user accounts and 5 legal entities, for firms with separate practice entities or affiliated offices.
A firm that wants advanced costs tied to matters usually needs Business. Compare the details on the pricing page.
A first month for a 60 person firm with three offices
1. Add open matters that carry advanced costs as budget lines, and import the GL accounts your ledger uses.
2. Name an approver for each practice group and the amount above which the managing partner signs.
3. Put expert, e-discovery, court reporting and contract attorney engagements on POs first. Leave small office purchases for a second phase.
4. Ask requesters to record acceptance when work is delivered, then turn on invoice matching.
5. At month end review spend by matter, office and vendor, and check what was bought outside a PO.
What is the best purchase order software for a law firm?
Pick the tool that approves the commitment, codes it to a client matter and holds an invoice that does not match what was agreed. Procurer suits firms that want that at a published price. Practice management suites suit firms that also need time entry, billing and trust accounting, and many firms use both.
Do law firms need purchase orders?
Yes, when the firm buys experts, vendors, contract staff or office supplies. A PO records the agreed scope and rate before work starts, which prevents disputes over an invoice later. Law firms often skip it because they sell time, but the costs they advance for clients and the overhead they run on are real money.
Can I tie vendor costs to a client matter?
Yes. Each request carries a matter or cost center and a GL account, and the approver sees the remaining budget before approving. Matter and GL budgets are on Business and above, with commitments and actuals for each one, so advanced costs are visible before the invoice arrives.
How do you handle purchase orders for services like expert witnesses and court reporters?
Record acceptance instead of a warehouse receipt. The requester marks the delivered work against the PO line, in full or in stages, and accounts payable pays only what was accepted. This works for transcripts, expert reports, productions and fixed fee engagements.
How much does purchase order software for a law firm cost?
Procurer starts at 149 USD a month per firm on Team, or 888 USD billed yearly. Business, with matter budgets and three-way matching, costs 299 USD monthly or 1 788 USD yearly. Scale costs 699 USD monthly or 4 188 USD yearly. Price does not change with the number of offices.
Does it work with QuickBooks Online and Xero?
Yes. Approved bills export to QuickBooks Online or Xero with the vendor and GL coding, so accounting does not rekey them. See QuickBooks Online purchase order approval.
Approve the expert before the engagement starts
Create your account, add your open matters and put the next expert, vendor or contract engagement through a request, an approval and a PO. Try the demo to see the process before choosing a plan.