Preparing your law firm for year-end: matters, documents and finances

Practical steps to ensure your firm is ready for the year ahead

Heading into the end of the year can feel overwhelming for Australian law firms, with countless tasks piling up and the pressure for a fast start in January.

We've put together a step-by-step guide to help our LEAP Legal Software clients and community focus on the essential tasks like reviewing matters, updating systems and running key reports, so you can finish the year with your digital workplace organised and refreshed.

Keeping LEAP up to date also ensures you’re always equipped with the latest security protections and features. Software updates are designed to keep your firm working efficiently, securely and consistently with the most advanced practice management solution available from us.

Note: This guide focuses on calendar year-end preparation (December), not EOFY financial reporting.

1. Matter management and operational clean-up

• Archive completed matters: Keep your matter list clutter-free by archiving completed matters in LEAP so they don't impact next year’s reporting. Run LEAP’s 'Matters Opened Report' to identify matters that may need action or formal closure.

• Audit correspondence: Review active matters to confirm that all essential emails, documents and attachments are saved correctly to the matter file.

• Check critical dates: Identify deadlines falling shortly after your holiday closure period, ensure they are recorded in 'Critical Dates' and set reminders to ensure they aren’t missed when the office reopens.

• Update matter numbering: If your firm uses year-based prefixes (e.g. 25/1234), check your LEAP settings to ensure the matter numbering automatically updates for the next year.

• Review staff permissions: Use LEAP’s 'Staff Security' tab to audit staff permissions and disable access for any temporary or departing staff, adjusting for those who will be “on call” during the holiday period.

• Update fee structure: If your staff hourly charge-out rate is changing in the new year, apply these updates to ensure accurate billing in January.

2. IT, security and system settings

• Upload local files: While LEAP data is cloud-secured, documents or scanned items may still sit locally on devices. Ensure these are filed into their respective matters to prevent data loss.

• Install latest updates: Check for and install any updates in LEAP to ensure your firm starts the new year with the latest features and security improvements.

• Log out of LEAP: Before the holiday break, ensure staff complete any unsaved work and log out of LEAP before heading off.

3. Documents and precedents

• Update core document: Review and refresh frequently used documents, including letterheads, precedents, cost agreements, or automated templates, to ensure the language is current and reflects any changes in fees, firm policies or internal processes.

• Test merge fields: Save time and reduce the need for manual editing by testing your automated templates in LEAP. Open a few matters to confirm that all fields are merging correctly and that the document layout appears as expected.

• Audit custom library: If your firm maintains its own library of customised precedents, perform a quick audit to remove outdated versions and group related documents for easier staff access and improved efficiency.

Resource tip: For guidance on updating or creating automated precedents in LEAP, explore the training videos on LEAP University at https://university.leap.com.au

4. Calendars, tasks and deadlines

• Audit firm calendar and tasks: Review your firm’s 'Calendar and Tasks' to ensure all critical deadlines, court dates and settlement dates are confirmed and accounted for during the holiday period.

• Reminders for critical dates: Within each matter’s 'Critical Dates' section, confirm that reminders are set for the last business day before the holiday break.

5. Client communication

• Update matter notes: Before sending notices, update the 'Matter Notes' section within all active files to record the office closure details and specify who is responsible for monitoring the matter during the break.

• Distribute closure notices: Using LEAP, create a holiday closure notice as a standardised precedent and send it to matter contacts or clients outlining closure dates and emergency protocols.

• Finalise email templates: Review and update year-end email templates or signatures change to ensure all outgoing communication remains consistent.

6. Financial review and reporting

• Finalise trust and office accounts: Ensure all trust and office accounting in LEAP is accurate. Reconcile the trust ledger balances against the bank statement and review any unpresented cheques to determine if they are stale and should be reissued or cancelled.

• Generate year-end compliance reports: Generate your essential year-end reports (for example: trust trial balance, aged WIP, aged debtors and banking reconciliation) to ensure your accountant or bookkeeper has all required up-to-date information.

• Clear unbilled work: View all outstanding unbilled WIP in LEAP and issue final invoices directly from the relevant matters to the clients to maximise end-of-year revenue.

• Run performance reports: Utilise LEAP’s reporting tools to evaluate your firm’s performance, efficiency and financial health. Generate key reports such as fee earner overview, matter balances report and debtors for strategic insights.

• New year planning: Use the financial insights to inform new year plans, including workflow improvements, template upgrades and training needs, such as LEAP refresher training.

Help and support during the holiday period

LEAP Support will be available from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm AEDT between 22 December 2025 and 2 January 2026, excluding public holidays. Our regular support services will resume on Monday, 5 January 2026.

• For email assistance, contact: support@leap.com.au.

• For self-help resources, visit the LEAP Help Centre at: https://community.leap.com.au.

• For training videos and step-by-step courses, explore: https://university.leap.com.au.

We wish you the very best over the holiday season and have a great start to the new year!