- Learning Centre
- Lawyer Programs
- Key Resources
- Legal Practice
- Continuous Improvement
- Cultural Competence & Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
- Lawyer-Client Relationships
- Practice Management
- Professional Conduct
- Professional Contributions
- Truth and Reconciliation
- Well-Being
- Sole Practitioner Resources
- Student Resources
- Public Resources
- Disaster Planning and Recovery
- Upcoming Events
- Media Room
- eBulletins
- Latest from the Law Society
- Home
- Resource Centre
- Key Resources
- Practice Management
- Software Comparison Chart
Choosing the right technology is one of the most important decisions a lawyer will ever make. It impacts how you deal with your clients, the type of work you do and how you manage your workload so you can go home at night.
To help you choose the option that is right for you, we compared the main features and costs of some of the most commonly used practice management/accounting packages currently on the market. The options included below meet the Law Society of Alberta’s trust safety filing requirements.
In creating this comparison, our goal is to place the choices on a level playing field and give you a starting point to choose the optimal product for your needs. The prices and feature noted are based on the best available information, are current as of the date of publication and are subject to change by the vendors.
Before making any purchase decision, you should reach out to the vendors or your IT consultant.
We’re also happy to answer any questions you may have. Please feel free to contact us at any time.
Best efforts were made to ensure that the information provided in this chart was accurate when it was assembled. Some limitations should be noted.
- This is a quickly evolving area and some of the information listed may have changed since being included in the chart. Products and features many have been added or deleted.
- The chart does not, and cannot, purport to be comprehensive. There are other offerings available in the marketplace that should always be considered before making any decisions.
- Information in the chart was obtained from public resources. There may be additional information available from private sources or other public sources that has not been included.
- We did not independently verify information that was provided about software or a service. If a website indicated that the offering performed a certain function in a certain way, we included this in the chart and did not independently confirm that it in fact performed as described. Similarly, we did not evaluate the quality or currency of the output provided by any of these offerings.
- Inclusion in the chart did not depend on confirmation that the tool has reached any threshold of use by the public.
If you believe that any information should be added, deleted or otherwise changed, please contact us.
To use the chart below, select the filters that apply to your firm and that you are looking for in a practice management software. This will narrow down the options to software that fits your requirements Please note that you may chose multiple items when filtering. For example, under “OS,” you may filter to display results for Mac and Windows.
Once you have filtered the software, explore each option by clicking the “+” icons to the left of the entries. This will display further details and specifications for each software option.
You can use the search bar to search for specific words within the chart entries. To clear your filters and start again, click the “x” icon at the right of the search bar.
Product Name | Description | Firm Size | OS | Server Location | Pricing Model | Cost | Discounts for New Users | Onboarding Assistance | Backup | Backup Retention | Data Retention Following Termination | Encryption | Mobile App | Email Integration | Calendar Integration | Online Payment | Client Portal | Multiple Currencies | Integrated Accounting |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
AbacusLaw | AbacusLaw is a comprehensive legal practice management solution with built-in payments and complete legal accounting – tailored for specific practice areas. AbacusLaw provides law firms with a holistic toolset, from client intake, calendaring, documents and emails, to billing, trust accounting and payments. Real time dashboard insights and robust reporting complete the picture. | Small Firm (1-10), Medium Firm (11-30), Large Firm (31+) | Windows, Cloud | Canada, USA, User's Desktop | Monthly subscription, Annual subscription | $69USD/user/month | Yes; Depends on number of licenses and other criteria | Yes, included | Daily | User Responsible | 1 month | Built-in - data at rest / Built-in - Data in transit; Database encryption is included, both in transit and at rest when using Abacus Private Cloud. | Yes - iOS, Yes - Android | Outlook | Outlook | Yes; Abacus Payment Exchange | Yes - included | No | Yes, Full Legal Accounting (Trust & General) |
Acumin | Acumin is software designed specifically for law firms. It is one fully integrated practice management, time, billing, accounting and reporting solution that responds to the needs of time keepers, accounting and other support staff. | Medium Firm (11-30), Large Firm (31+) | Windows, Cloud | Canada, User's Desktop | One-time purchase of software licence, Monthly subscription | One time costs start at $1,250USD/license. Subscription fees start at $50USD/month/user | Yes; Volume, originating software, features selected | Yes, for a fee; Custom deployment services are based on customer requirements, the level of user interaction and change management opportunities. Fees are quoted in CDN$. | User Responsible | User Responsible | User Responsible | Built-in - data at rest | Yes - iOS, Yes - Android | Outlook | Outlook | No | Yes - add-on feature; Price varies | Yes | Yes, Full Legal Accounting (Trust & General) |
Brief Accounting | Brief Accounting is a fully integrated time, billing and accounting program custom-designed for Canadian law firms. The team at Brief Legal Software works closely with lawyers to provide high-level support. Brief Accounting has been operating as a solution for Canadian law firms for over 30 years. | Small Firm (1-10), Medium Firm (11-30), Large Firm (31+) | Windows, Mac | Canada, USA, User's Desktop | Monthly subscription, Annual subscription, Tiered pricing based on service level (Basic, Pro, Enterprise, etc.) | Starting at $89.95CAD/user/month | No | Yes, included | User Responsible | User Responsible | Other | User responsible for data security | No | Other | None | No | No | Yes | Yes, Full Legal Accounting (Trust & General) |
Clio | Clio is a cloud-based legal software platform that is meant to simplify operations, grow businesses and allow legal professionals to work remotely from anywhere. Their Suite of products, including Clio Manage and Clio Grow, helps to manage everything from client intake to invoicing. | Small Firm (1-10), Medium Firm (11-30), Large Firm (31+) | Windows, Cloud, Mac | Canada, USA | Monthly subscription, Annual subscription, Tiered pricing based on service level (Basic, Pro, Enterprise, etc.) | $69USD/user/month for our most popular plan | Yes; New and existing users can use promo code: LSA to get a discount on all Clio products. | Yes, included | Daily | 3 months | 3 months | Built-in - data at rest / Built-in - data in transit; Clio ensures that your data is secure using bank-grade 256-bit SSL encryption. Clio’s infrastructure is hosted in physically secure data centers that meet rigid SSAE 16 specifications. Geo-redundant backups are performed daily, and site security and privacy are routinely audited by third parties. | Yes - iOS, Yes - Android | Outlook, Gmail | Outlook, Google Calendar | Yes; Clio uses Clio Payments which is an in-house payment processor built by Clio. | Yes - included | Yes | Yes, but only with third-party integration; QuickBooks Online, Zero |
CosmoLex | CosmoLex gives Canadian legal professionals a total modern practice management solution. The software manages everything from tasks and docketing to general and trust accounting, invoicing, document management, compliance reporting and more. CosmoLex can improve speed, efficiency and accuracy in operations while maintaining high standards of compliance and security. | Small Firm (1-10), Medium Firm (11-30), Large Firm (31+) | Cloud | Canada, USA | Monthly subscription, Annual subscription | $79USD/user/month | Yes; LawPay monthly fee covered by CosmoLex. Free login for external bookkeeper or accountant | Daily | 2 weeks | 1 month | Built-in - data at rest / Built-in - data in transit; 256-bit SSL in transit & at-rest encryption. 2-factor authentication | Yes - iOS, Yes - Android | Outlook, Gmail, Other | Outlook, Google Calendar | Yes; LawPay | Yes - included | No | Yes, Full Legal Accounting (Trust & General) | |
GhostPractice | GhostPractice offers a new alternative to legal trust accounting with an all-in-one practice management software for law firms. GhostPractice is a completely integrated front-office/back-office program that provides modules that are specific to lawyers and legal assistants versus those for bookkeepers and admin teams. | Small Firm (1-10), Medium Firm (11-30), Large Firm (31+) | Windows | Canada, User's Desktop | Monthly subscription | $55CAD/user/month subject to $550CAD/month minimum. | Yes; Volume license discounts available. | Yes, included | User Responsible | User Responsible | User Responsible | User responsible for data security | Yes - iOS, Yes - Android | Outlook | Outlook | No | Yes - add-on feature; Cost subject to Web License | Yes | Yes, Full Legal Accounting (Trust & General) |
LEAP Legal Software | LEAP is a cloud-based legal practice productivity solution that enables law firms to streamline their processes while increasing the firm’s productivity and profits. Law firms using LEAP software enjoy the benefits of a practice management system, legal accounting, document assembly and management, and legal publishing assets in one integrated solution. | Small Firm (1-10), Medium Firm (11-30), Large Firm (31+) | Windows, Cloud | Canada | Monthly subscription | $129CAD/user/month | Yes; Free data migration from applicable legacy products. | Yes, included | Daily | Other | 1 month | Built-in - data at rest; Built-in - data in transit; Each LEAP application is accessed via HTTPS using Transport Layer Security (TLS). TLS is a cryptographic protocol designed to protect information transmitted over the internet against eavesdropping, tampering, and message forgery. Once client data reaches the LEAP cloud infrastructure, all information is then encrypted at rest, using AES-256, military grade encryption. | Yes - iOS, Yes - Android | Outlook | Outlook | No | Yes - included | No | Yes, but only with third-party integration - Quickbooks and Xero |
PCLaw | For more than 30 years, PCLaw has been enabling firms to manage matter information, bill and collect client payments, pay vendors, manage trust accounts, and track calendar appointments, tasks, time, and expenses — all from a single source. The software is compliant with Canadian trust accounting requirements. | Small Firm (1-10), Medium Firm (11-30), Large Firm (31+) | Windows | User's Desktop, Other | Monthly subscription | $112CAD/user/month | No | No | User Responsible | User Responsible | User Responsible | User responsible for data security | Yes - iOS, Yes - Android | Outlook | Outlook | No | No | Yes | Yes, Full Legal Accounting (Trust & General) |
Soluno | Soluno is a user-friendly, cloud-based software that empowers law firms to manage their legal business with ease. Features include matter management, time/expense entry, billing, accounting, trust banking and more. The software allows firms to monitor performance, find new growth opportunities and increase efficiency with a full suite of financial management features backed by Soluno's support team. | Small Firm (1-10), Medium Firm (11-30), Large Firm (31+) | Windows, Cloud, Mac | Canada, USA, Europe, User's Desktop | Monthly subscription, Annual subscription | $79USD/user/month billed monthly, or $71USD/user/month when pre-paid annually | Yes; 10% off MSRP and a free full matter-history conversion when users pre-pay for a year | Yes, included | Daily | User Responsible | 1 month | Built-in - data at rest / Built-in - data in transit; 256-bit SSL in-transit and at-rest encryption; field-level data encryption; optional 2-factor authentication. | No | Outlook | Outlook | Yes; LawPay, Gravity Payments, Fattmerchant | No | No | Yes, Full Legal Accounting (Trust & General) |
uLaw | uLawPractice includes all the features needed to help deliver a positive experience to clients, automate practice and be Law Society/CRA compliant. Features include simple legal accounting, actionable analytics, automated court forms, cloud integration and more. | Small Firm (1-10) | Windows, Cloud, Mac | Canada | Monthly subscription, Annual subscription | $34CAD/user/month | Yes; New Entrepreneur Discount, Student or Called to Bar discount and Annual Payment discount | Yes, included | Daily | 3 months | 3 months | Built-in - data in transit; 256 Bit Encryption | Yes - iOS, Yes - Android | Gmail | Outlook, Apple, Google Calendar | Yes; Nuvie Payments, LawPay, TD Payments, Global Payments and Moneris | Yes - included | No | Yes, Full Legal Accounting (Trust & General) |