Large firms
AI trust accounting for large firms
Every trust and escrow account, across every office and state, reconciled daily, with the controls general counsel and auditors ask for.
- Read-only to startBank and case systems connect read-only; write-back is a switch the firm turns on.
- Rules for 50 states and DCEach account is checked against its own state bar's trust accounting rules.
- A person approves moneyEvery disbursement carries a named approver and signatory.
- SOC 2 audit in progressSecurity overview and trust center available on request.
In short
suss. is AI trust accounting for large and multi-office law firms. It reconciles every IOLTA, dedicated client trust and escrow account across offices and states every day, keeps a ledger for every client-matter, checks each account against the trust accounting rules of the state it is held under, ages dormant balances so they are worked before they become an audit finding, and records who prepared, approved and signed each disbursement. It runs alongside the firm's financial system of record, connects read-only to its banks, and produces the record the firm's general counsel, auditors and carriers ask for.
Where firm-wide trust accounting breaks, and what changes
One view of every trust and escrow account, by office and state.
ABA Model Rule 1.15(a) keeps client funds in an account in the state where the lawyer's office is situated, or elsewhere with the consent of the client or third person, so multi-office firms often run accounts in several states under different rules. suss. reconciles each account daily against its own state's requirements, from reconciliation frequency to how long records are kept.
Dormant balances are worked, not discovered.
Client balances with no activity are aged by office and routed to the responsible attorney. When an owner cannot be found after reasonable efforts, many state ethics opinions direct the funds to the state under its unclaimed property law, and some states route them to the bar or the IOLTA program instead; suss. keeps the search and the outcome on the record.
Every disbursement shows who prepared, approved and signed.
Bar opinions on wire fraud expect lawyers to take reasonable steps to protect entrusted funds, such as warning clients and confirming wire instructions by phone at an independently known number. Each disbursement record in suss. carries the preparer, the approving attorney and the signatory, so separation of duties is visible to the firm's auditors.
How a large firm uses suss.
- Every morning
Each morning the finance team sees exceptions by office: an unmatched deposit in Houston, a dormant balance crossing two years in New York, an escrow wire waiting on partner approval. Everything else across every account is already tied and recorded.
- When money moves
At month and quarter end, each office's reconciliations are complete and signed, and general counsel sees the firm-wide view: every account tied, every exception and who cleared it.
- When someone asks
When an auditor, a carrier or a state bar asks, the record is exported by account, office or matter, with approvals and signatories attached.
What you keep
Works alongside the systems you run today
Your financial system of record, your banks, your approval and wire policies, and your auditors. suss. works alongside all of them.
- Clio
- MyCase
- Filevine
- CasePeer
- QuickBooks
- Bank feeds
Guides for large firms firms
All resources- Ten trust accounting mistakes
Ten trust accounting mistakes that lead to bar audits and discipline
The routine errors behind most trust account findings, what each one looks like on the books, and the control that prevents it.
Read the guide - Three-way reconciliation
How to do a three-way trust account reconciliation
The three balances, the steps, how often your state requires it, and what to do when the numbers do not agree.
Read the guide
Questions firms ask
Something not covered here? Ask us directly.
Which state's trust accounting rules apply to each account?
Under ABA Model Rule 1.15(a), trust funds are kept in the state where the lawyer's office is situated, or elsewhere with the consent of the client or third person, and some states' versions require the account to be in that state. Model Rule 8.5 decides which state's disciplinary rules govern particular conduct. suss. records which state's rules each account is run under and checks it against them; the firm's counsel decides the mapping.
What happens to client funds we cannot return?
Ethics opinions in many states, including Georgia, Illinois, Oregon and Missouri, direct lawyers to make reasonable efforts to locate the owner and then dispose of the funds as the state's unclaimed property law or trust rule directs. Some states send unidentified funds to the bar or the IOLTA program rather than the state treasury. suss. ages dormant balances, routes them for follow-up and keeps the search and the outcome on the record.
Does suss. replace our financial system?
No. suss. runs alongside the firm's financial system of record and keeps the trust and escrow accounting: daily reconciliation, client-matter ledgers, approvals and the close record. Tell us your system when we talk.
How does suss. handle security?
suss. connects to banks read-only today, and a SOC 2 audit is in progress. Our trust center covers data handling and access controls, and we share our security overview on request.
Does suss. move money?
Not today. suss. prepares and records disbursements, and named people at the firm approve and execute them. Write-back is a switch the firm turns on, behind the same approval gate.
See it on your own accounts.
We connect read-only, run alongside your current process, and show you the record before you change anything.
Talk to us about your firm