Types of Law Firm Reports to Measure Business Performance

Running a successful law firm isn’t just about practicing law—it’s about understanding your numbers. Accurate reporting gives firms the insight they need to manage cases, monitor cash flow, and strengthen client relationships. From tracking billable hours to monitoring trust accounts and marketing ROI, law firm reports provide the visibility needed to make smarter business decisions.

The 8am™ 2025 Legal Industry Report shows that firms using automated reporting tools grow their revenue up to 30% faster than those using manual spreadsheets—underscoring the value of structured, accessible data.

This article explains what law firm data reporting is, explores key types of reports your firm should review regularly, and demonstrates how a law firm dashboard or customizable reports feature, like the one available in 8am MyCase, helps you turn numbers into actionable insights.

What are law firm data reports?

Law firm data reporting involves collecting and analyzing information about a firm’s operations, finances, productivity, and client relationships. These reports distill complex datasets into meaningful metrics—such as revenue trends, case status updates, or time entry summaries—allowing firms to monitor performance across every area of the practice.

Effective law firm reports go beyond compliance and bookkeeping. They help identify opportunities to improve client service, reduce costs, and boost profitability. Examples include accounting reports, financial summaries, case and contact logs, productivity tracking, and marketing or lead-source analysis—all covered in the sections below.

Types of law firm reports for business insights

Comprehensive law firm reporting offers a 360-degree view of your firm’s financial health and operational efficiency. Below are the most common report categories and why they matter for your business.

Accounting reports

Accounting reports provide the foundation for any firm’s financial transparency. They help lawyers, bookkeepers, and firm owners understand how money flows in and out of the business.

Common types include:

• Balance sheet: Offers a snapshot of what your firm owns and owes at any given time

• Cash flow statement: Tracks cash inflows and outflows to clarify liquidity and spending patterns

• General ledger: Lists all transactions across accounts for easy auditing and reconciliation

• Profit and loss statement: Displays income versus expenses to calculate net profit

• 1099 vendor report: Generates 1099-NEC forms for vendors who received $600 or more during the tax year

Together, these reports create a clear picture of your firm’s financial stability and readiness for tax season.

Financial reports

Financial reporting goes beyond bookkeeping—it highlights where profits are generated, which clients are behind on payments, and how trust funds are being managed. Firms can also monitor law firm inventory and recovery reporting to ensure all assets and receivables are properly tracked.

Common types include:

• Aging invoices: Categorizes overdue invoices by date range (1–15, 16–30, 31–60, 61+ days)

• Accounts receivable: Summarizes what clients owe, filtered by case or client

• Case balance summary: Displays total financials for each case

• Case revenue: Compares what’s billed versus what’s collected

• Fee allocation: Tracks revenue earned by each timekeeper

• Trust account summary and activity reports: Ensure compliance with trust accounting regulations

• Non-trust retainer and credit reports: Show activity for non-trust retainers and credits

• Electronic payments and credit card fees: Provide visibility into transaction fees and batch activity

For larger firms, legal spend analytics can be invaluable. These analytics break down spending across departments or case types, offering insight into where resources are best allocated. 

Case and contact reports

Case and contact reports centralize your client and matter data. They show who your clients are, what cases are active, and when key deadlines approach—such as statutes of limitation.

Common types include:

• Case list report: Organizes matters by attorney, practice area, or case stage

• Contact report: Consolidates all client, company, and lead contact information

• Statute of limitations report: Identifies cases nearing filing deadlines to prevent missed opportunities

These reports give firm leaders a real-time view of caseload distribution and client engagement—helping ensure deadlines are met and no client is overlooked.

Productivity reports

When it comes to efficiency, law firm profitability reporting is essential. Productivity reports evaluate how your team spends time and how those efforts translate into revenue.

Common types include:

• User time and expenses: Tracks billable and non-billable hours per employee

• Firm time and expenses: Summarizes total hours and expenses across all users

• Case time and expenses: Breaks down time and cost data for individual cases

Reviewing these performance metrics enables you to identify top performers, rebalance workloads, and understand how time allocation affects the bottom line. 

Leads reports

Marketing and intake tracking are often overlooked in traditional law firm financial reporting, yet they’re key drivers of firm growth. Leads reports bring those efforts into focus by showing how potential clients move through your intake funnel—from initial inquiry to consultation to signed client.

Common types include:

• Consultation fee revenue: Measures earnings from initial consultations.

• Leads referral source: Identifies which marketing channels or referral partners deliver the highest-value leads.

• Leads forecasted pipeline value: Estimates the potential revenue of leads in your intake pipeline.

Together, these reports give you visibility into which marketing activities generate real results, support more accurate budgeting, and help you refine your client acquisition strategy over time.

Benefits of creating customizable reports 

Every firm operates differently, and that’s where being able to create custom reports shines. Unlike pre-set templates, custom reporting lets you tailor data views to your specific goals—whether you want to focus on case revenue, case expenses, or client acquisition rates.

Key benefits include:

• Relevance: Highlight metrics that matter most to your practice areas

• Efficiency: Avoid repetitive spreadsheet merges or external calculations

• Adaptability: Adjust reports as your firm grows or data needs evolve

When properly set up, custom reporting functions as an intelligent control center, helping firms connect law firm data analytics directly to outcomes like profit margins and client satisfaction. 

How MyCase customizable reporting simplifies law firm reporting

MyCase simplifies everything discussed above by providing pre-built reports for law firms across accounting, financial, productivity, and client categories—plus the flexibility of customizable reporting tools for deeper insight.

With MyCase customizable reporting, firms can:

• Reorder columns for clarity and context

• Filter data by case, client, attorney, or timeframe

• Run new Work-in-Progress and Event reports directly in the platform (available in the advanced tier)

• Perform quick calculations (average, total, min, max, count) without exporting to Excel

Ready to see how it works? Schedule a MyCase demo to explore custom reporting in action.