Record your time against the right client and matter as you work. Enter start and finish times, mark the work billable or not, and the sheet totals your hours and billable value for the week.
| Date | Client | Matter | Work done | Hours | Billable? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13/10 | Bello Ltd | MAT-014 | Reviewed hearing notice | 0.50 | Yes |
| 13/10 | Okon (estate) | MAT-022 | Drafted letter to registry | 1.25 | Yes |
| 13/10 | Internal | — | Team meeting | 1.00 | No |
| 14/10 | Bello Ltd | MAT-014 | Appearance: Federal High Court | 3.00 | Yes |
- Columns for date, client, matter, work done, start and finish
- Hours calculated from start and finish times
- Billable Yes/No drop-down and hourly rate
- Weekly totals: all hours, billable hours, billable amount
- Room for 50 entries a week, header row frozen while you scroll
- A "How to use" sheet
- 1Download the file and add your name and the week at the top.
- 2Log each task when you finish it, with the client, matter, and start and finish times.
- 3Mark it billable or not and enter your hourly rate.
- 4Check the weekly totals before you hand the sheet in.
Most unbilled time is not deliberate; it is forgotten. Short calls, quick reviews and emails sent between hearings rarely make it onto a timesheet filled in on Friday afternoon from memory.
Recording time as you go, against a specific matter, is the single habit that recovers the most revenue. A timesheet with start and finish times makes that quick enough to keep up.
Write each entry as it should appear on the invoice: "Drafted statement of claim", "Telephone attendance on client re settlement", "Appearance at the Federal High Court". Clear entries mean fewer queries and less rewriting at billing time.
Record non-billable time too: training, internal meetings, business development. It shows where the week actually went, helps partners spread workload fairly, and makes billable-hour targets realistic.
Skip the spreadsheet
In The Counsel, lawyers log time against the matter as the day happens, and it flows straight into the client’s invoice. No timesheets to collect.
How are hours calculated?
From the Start and Finish times you enter, rounded to two decimal places. Enter times like 09:30 and 11:15.
Can I use decimal hours instead of times?
Yes: leave Start and Finish empty and type the hours straight into the Hours column.
Does it work for a whole team?
Each lawyer keeps their own copy. If you want everyone’s time in one place, rolling straight into invoices, that is what The Counsel does.