Choose client-fund accounting and tax help in Norcross
For a law-firm owner, a balanced trust reconciliation and an explanation of the money held for each client are related but different outputs. Before commissioning Norcross accounting and tax help, define what the practitioner will establish about individual balances and a proposed fee debit, beyond agreement between account totals.
Financial Sales Insider focuses on established operating-business owners with annual personal income before tax of at least $500,000, preferably $1 million or more. Being an attorney, the firm's billings and client-trust balances do not establish that qualification. This guide concerns the accounting assignment around client funds, rather than a recommendation about moving money.
Define the client-fund review before comparing proposals
King of Kings Business & Tax Advisory publishes a Norcross office and a substantial law-firm service description. It expressly offers monthly trust reconciliation and describes three-way comparison of the bank statement, trust ledger and individual matter ledgers, alongside bookkeeping and tax services. [1]
That is a concrete service to discuss. Ask what the reconciliation output will explain and which questions require further review. Does the proposed work identify the balance held for each client or third person and the supporting record for an intended fee debit? What happens when the totals agree but the explanation for a transaction remains incomplete?
The public offer already covers reconciliation and client-level records. Use it to define the assignment you need, without assuming every advertised function is included in your proposal. Provider descriptions do not confirm current capacity, independently verified credentials or an FSI relationship.
Look beyond agreement between three totals
Start with the account, reporting period and available records. Ask the professional to identify the bank information, account ledger and client or matter ledgers used in the comparison. Request an explanation of outstanding items and any difference that remains unresolved.
Then distinguish the arithmetic check from the questions about particular funds. Agreement between totals does not, by itself, explain why a receipt belongs to a particular client or why a proposed debit represents an earned fee. A balanced report should not be treated as blanket clearance of entitlement, tax treatment or every transaction.
Ask for a client-level explanation you can assess: the recorded balance, relevant receipts and disbursements, supporting documents and any unresolved question. The review should make a missing explanation visible, rather than use an unexplained adjustment simply to make figures agree.
This is a commissioning test, not an instruction to perform a reconciliation or a promise that a particular report detects every irregularity. Confirm the actual procedures and limits with the practitioner.
Keep the specific client's balance and fee record visible
The State Bar of Georgia's published Rule 1.15(II) requires trust-account records to reflect the exact balance held for each client or third person. It also addresses earned lawyer's fees being debited against a specific client's account and recorded as such. [2]
That gives the proposed review a more precise question than whether the overall bank balance looks sufficient. Ask how the professional connects an intended fee debit with the relevant client record and the evidence supporting its description.
The request may involve the fee agreement, billing information, transaction history and explanation from the responsible lawyer. Have the appropriate legal professional assess questions about whether a fee is earned or who is entitled to funds. An accounting code or software label should not silently decide those questions.
Agree how the output will distinguish a supported record, missing evidence and a matter awaiting legal interpretation. This guide does not classify every advance payment or retainer, establish an amount available to the firm or authorize a withdrawal.
Identify unresolved interests without assuming wrongdoing
A discrepancy, a disputed fee and an incomplete posting are different concerns to describe accurately. State what is known and what needs examination before selecting additional work.
Published Rule 1.15(I) addresses keeping disputed portions separate while promptly distributing undisputed portions. Its known-third-person-interest provision concerns interests based on a statutory lien, a final judgment addressing the funds, or a written agreement by the client or lawyer on the client's behalf guaranteeing payment from them. It allows disregard where the lawyer reasonably concludes there is a valid defense to that lien, judgment or agreement. [2] Have the relevant professional assess the actual conditions rather than apply a blanket approach to all money held.
Request an explanation of how unresolved interests are identified in the records and communicated to the person assessing them. Do not treat a reconciliation difference as a finding of fraud, or assume that correcting an entry settles a genuine legal dispute.
The output should preserve the question that remains open. It should not present unsupported certainty simply because the accounting figures can be made to balance.
Match the professional scope to the work required
Heaven & Alvarez's Norcross business-tax page describes return preparation, year-round planning and coordination with accounting and payroll records. [3] If approaching a provider offering that broader service, specify whether you also need the client-fund review described above. A preparation engagement and a defined trust-record assignment need their outputs named.
Geer & Associates publishes a Norcross office and describes accounting, financial-statement services, forensic accounting and litigation support. [4] Clarify the actual assignment rather than assume that an audit or litigation label defines a routine client-fund review.
These observations do not establish that an unlisted service is unavailable. Ask which work the proposed professional accepts, what evidence it needs and when legal or other specialist assessment is required. A specific record question should guide the discussion.
Separate the record explanation from the tax conclusion
The professional-conduct rules address handling and records of client and third-party funds. They should not be used as a substitute for federal tax analysis.
Ask the tax practitioner which facts and documents it needs before using the accounting information. Keep any uncertainty about fee entitlement, the agreement or the underlying transaction visible. A proposed transfer, a bookkeeping classification and a completed tax assessment should not be treated as interchangeable.
Separate the accepted accounting, legal and tax work in the proposals, then compare fees for the separately defined tax work. That guide does not quote trust-reconciliation or legal-review prices, and a provider's advertised savings condition is not an FSI offer.
Question before commissioning the review
Does a balanced trust reconciliation mean the money is available to the firm?
No such conclusion follows from matching totals alone. Request the client-level balance and support for the proposed fee debit, with unresolved interests identified for the appropriate assessment. The published rules' client-specific records and interest provisions matter alongside the arithmetic comparison. [2]
Describe the client-fund accounting help you need
Summarize your practice ownership, personal pretax income range, accounting arrangements, period and question. Keep client identities, privileged documents and account details out of the initial inquiry. Secure exchange, professional fit, availability and engagement terms require confirmation.
Describe my business tax needs
CPA and EA firms can discuss participation separately.
Sources and scope
[1] King of Kings Business & Tax Advisory, law-firm accounting, complete offer and geographic disclosures. [2] State Bar of Georgia, published handbook, complete current published text and comments for Rules 1.15(I), (II) and (III). [3] Heaven & Alvarez, business tax preparation and planning. [4] Geer & Associates, services and locations. Evidence captured October 31, 2026; this is not a rule-amendment date. No legal reconciliation frequency, fee entitlement, transfer instruction, fraud finding, software assurance, compliance certification or individual tax result is established here. Published provider descriptions are attributed observations, not recommendations or verified available supply.