What is FirmStack?

FirmStack is the practice-management system built for Nigerian law firms. It keeps your matters, court dates, tasks, billing, and the work your team does in one place — so nothing slips through a WhatsApp thread.

At any moment, FirmStack should answer five questions for your firm:

• What matters are active?
• What needs attention today?
• Which court dates or deadlines are at risk?
• What has been billed, what is paid, and what is late?
• Who is responsible for each matter and each task?

What’s new

Recent changes. If you have used FirmStack before, start here.

• Opening a matter, in plain words. One page asks who the client is (or someone new), what kind of work it is, which steps to follow, and the court date. Open a new matter on Home opens a short window instead; the matter then shows Finish setting up this matter.
• Each matter opens like the cover of a file: where it is, the file, and the story so far, with what comes next at the top.
• The court diary: day by day, by month, or by person, with who is going to each date and Can we take this date? before you agree one.
• Time with your work. On matters billed by the hour, time you write down goes on the next bill at each person’s rate.
• Bills in plain words: what is still owed, Remind the client on WhatsApp or email, and Record a payment.
• Your team, for partners: what needs you, who is carrying what, and what moved this week.
• A tab bar on your phone: Home, Matters, Dates and Record work.

Getting started

Signing up your firm

Signing up has four short steps and takes about three minutes.

1. Your name, email and a password (at least 8 letters and numbers, with a capital letter). Tick the box to agree to the Terms and the Privacy notice, then click Continue.
2. Type the 6-number code we email you. Not there after a minute? Look in spam, or send a new code.
3. Your firm’s name and the state you are in. The name goes on your letters and bills.
4. One matter you are working on now: the client’s name and what to call the matter. Pick the kind of work; for a court case you can add the other side and the next court date.

Click Open this matter and you land on it, with the court date already in the diary. Home then keeps a short list headed Next, for your firm: invite your colleagues, protect your sign-in, and add your office address. It stays until it is done.

Inviting your colleagues

From Invite your colleagues on Home, or from People, click Invite a colleague, type their email and choose their role (Partner, Associate, Paralegal, Accounts, Secretary, or Admin). They get an email and join when they accept it. Until then they show as Invited, not joined yet.

Exploring with sample data

Want to look around first? On the last sign-up step, click Not now. Show me sample matters (or Show me sample matters on an empty Home). FirmStack adds 3 sample clients, 3 sample matters with deadlines and tasks, and 3 sample bills with a payment. Every sample record carries a small Sample tag, so you can always tell it apart from real work.

Signing in and out

On the sign-in page, enter your email address and password, then click Sign in. If you have two-factor sign-in turned on, you will also enter the 6-digit code from your authenticator app.

To sign out, click your name at the bottom of the sidebar and choose Sign out.

Finding your way around

The sidebar on the left is your main navigation. The top group is your daily work:

The Account group below it holds:

On your phone

FirmStack works in your phone’s browser. A tab bar along the bottom of the screen gives you four shortcuts:

Tap the menu button at the top of the screen to reach everything else.

Home

Home is the first page you see after signing in. It answers one question: what needs attention right now?

How Home changes

Home adapts to where your firm is. It never shows you a wall of empty boxes.

What you will see

At the top: the date, a greeting, one line saying how many things need you today, and buttons such as Open a new matter, Record work and New bill.

When nothing needs you, Home says you are up to date. Someone in an Accounts role sees the money first.

Clients

Clients is your directory of everyone your firm acts for.

Client list

Search by name or email, and filter by client type — Individual or Organisation.

Adding a client

1. Click New client at the top right of the Clients page.
2. Fill in the details below. Only the name is required.
3. Click Save client.

A client’s page

Click a client to open their page. It shows their matters, their bills, what they have been billed, paid and still owe, and their contact details. You can open a new matter for them from here too.

Matters

What is a matter?

A matter is one piece of legal work — a suit, a transaction, an advisory brief, a CAC registration. The word covers both contentious and non-contentious work.

The Matters page lists your matters under three tabs: Active, On hold, and Closed. Switch between Mine and Firm-wide, and filter by lead lawyer. The matters that most need attention sit at the top. Click any row to open the matter.

Opening a matter

Click New matter on Matters. One page asks what it needs, and grows as you answer:

Click Open this matter. FirmStack checks the client and the other side against your other matters, puts the court date in the diary, and takes you to the matter.

In a hurry? Open a new matter on Home opens a short window: the client, a name, the kind of work and, for court work, the other side and the next date. The matter opens at once, and its Overview shows Finish setting up this matter for the rest: the steps to follow, the lead lawyer and how it is billed.

Want the client questionnaire as well? Use Detailed set-up, with the client questionnaire at the bottom of the new-matter page.

The matter page

Each matter opens on its Overview, laid out like the cover of a file:

Use Make a document at the top of the page to make a first draft filled in from the matter. The More actions menu lets you copy a short matter brief to paste into WhatsApp or email.

Writing down what happened in court

After a court date passes, FirmStack asks what happened. Click Write it down under Coming next on the Overview, or answer What happened in court? on the date in Dates & tasks, and choose one:

Add a note for the file — for example, “Court ordered the defendant to file a reply within 14 days.” FirmStack saves the outcome as a note on the matter. Tick Create a follow-up task to turn a court order into a task with a due date. Click Save outcome.

The conflict check

When you open a matter, FirmStack checks the names on it — the client and the other side — against your firm’s other clients and matters. If something looks like a clash, the matter’s Overview says so under Coming next, with a Look at it button for a partner.

To resolve a possible match, the partner writes a short review note, types their full name to confirm, and chooses Approve to proceed or Mark no name match.

The client’s form

Let the client fill in their own details. On the matter’s Case details tab, click Send the client the form. No email address? Click Copy the form link and send it on WhatsApp.

The client fills it in from the link, with no account needed. When they send it, you get a notification and the Overview shows that they sent their answers. Click Check their answers and keep what is right. Nothing the client sends changes the matter until you accept it.

Putting a matter on hold, or closing it

On the Overview, under The file, click Put on hold or close. Before a matter closes, FirmStack lists anything still open — tasks, dates still to come, money still owed — and asks you to confirm.

Dates

Dates brings every court date, filing deadline and meeting from every matter into one place. Switch between the Court diary and Deadlines at the top of the page.

Deadlines

Deadlines shows what is late or close. At the top, summary cards show what is Overdue (red), Due today (amber), and Due this week (blue). Filter the list by All, Overdue, Due today, Due this week, or Future.

Each row shows the type of date, the title, when it is, the venue, the matter, and how many days remain or have passed. Switch to Calendar for a month view.

The court diary

The court diary shows every court date, filing deadline and meeting, with who is going and how ready they are. Look at it three ways: Day by day (this week and next, like a paper diary), Month (click a day to see it) and By person (who is in court each day of the week, with everyone free all week listed underneath). Choose Mine to see only the dates you are going to.

When the court offers a date, use Can we take this date? It tells you if anyone is already in court that day, or if it is a public holiday. To put a date in the diary, click Add a date: choose what it is, the matter, the day and time, the court and who is going. FirmStack checks for clashes as you choose the day, adds the getting-ready tasks and reminds whoever is going.

You see dates only on matters you can see. If a colleague is in court on a matter you can't see, the diary shows only that they are busy at that time, with nothing about the matter. A matter you are walled off from does not show at all.

When a court is not sitting

A strike, a public holiday, a court vacation, or a judge who is not sitting can wipe out a run of court dates. Instead of updating them one by one:

1. On the Court diary, click Mark days a court is not sitting (or, on Month, The court is not sitting this day). On Deadlines, it is Court not sitting? Mark dates.
2. Choose the reason: Judiciary strike, Public holiday, Court vacation, Judge not sitting, or Other reason.
3. Set the first and last day affected. Name the court, or leave it empty for all courts. Add a note if you like.
4. Click Find affected dates. Untick any that are still going ahead.
5. Click Mark to confirm.

Every marked date is recorded as not sitting, and FirmStack creates a task on each matter to get the new date.

Putting dates on your phone

On the Court diary, click Put these dates on my phone. FirmStack downloads the dates on screen as an iCal (.ics) file. Open it to add the dates to Google Calendar, Outlook, or Apple Calendar.

Tasks

Tasks are the work your firm gives out, with or without a matter. The Tasks page puts them in order of when they are due: what needs doing now (late, or waiting for you to check), today, this week and later. Switch between Mine and Everyone's, and use Show only to see one matter or one person.

FirmStack also creates some tasks for you — for example, preparation tasks when a court date is booked, a follow-up when a bill has been late for 30 days, or a partner review when the conflict check finds a possible clash.

Creating a task

1. Click New task.
2. Add a title, priority, due date, the matter (optional), who it is assigned to, and a description.
3. Use “Where to find it” to say where the work lives — for example, “Drafted on shared drive” or “Hard copy on your desk”.
4. If a partner should sign it off, turn on Requires review before completion and choose a reviewer.
5. Click Create task.

To finish a task, tick the box beside it. Tick it again to undo. Late tasks are in red, and someone else's late task has a button to remind them. More on each task changes its date or who has it.

Tasks with review

Some work should not be marked done by the person who did it — a draft that needs a partner’s eyes, or a filing that needs sign-off. Turn on Requires review before completion and pick a reviewer.

Work Record

Much of a lawyer’s work never shows up anywhere — the 7am mention in Ikeja, the call with the client, the research at night. Work Record is where it does. It is your own record of the work you do.

Recording work

Work Record opens on your week. Some of it FirmStack writes down for you as you work: matters opened, steps done, documents made, bills sent. These say From FirmStack.

1. For everything else, use Write down work you did at the top of the page (or Record work on your phone).
2. Choose the kind of work: Court, Drafting, Call or message, Meeting, Research or Something else. More kinds has Negotiation, Checking someone’s work and Winning new work.
3. Say what you did in a line, the matter if there is one, and when: Today, Yesterday or Another day.
4. Choose how long it took, if you like: 15 min up to Half a day, or Other.
5. Click Save to my record. It says You wrote this.

The kinds describe the work. They do not score it, and nobody is ranked by them.

Time and timesheets

On a matter billed by the hour, FirmStack asks how long the work took and shows Bill the client for this time, already ticked. Untick it for time the client should not pay for. Your week shows each piece of work with its time and where it stands: To bill, On bill INV-…, Not billed or Fixed fee.

Forgot the time? Click Add time (or Change time) on the entry. Time already on a bill can no longer change. Click See it as a timesheet to see the week with matters down the side and days across; click a box to see the work behind it.

Working with colleagues

When you write work down, click Add who worked with you to name the colleagues who helped. On a matter, you can only name people on that matter. They see it under Waiting for you and answer Yes, I did or That wasn’t me. A confirmed name stays on the record, so credit lands where it belongs.

Reviews & feedback

Want a second pair of eyes on something you wrote down? Under the entry, click Ask for a review and choose a partner or admin who can see the matter. It shows Waiting for review until they answer. Records other people asked you to look at appear under Waiting for you.

At the bottom of the page, My month, ready to share gathers the month for sign-off, and Feedback I have had keeps every review note on your work. A dispute never hides or deletes your work: you always see it, read the reason and can add your side.

Your team

Your team is the page for partners and anyone else whose role includes looking after the team. It shows the work itself — no scores, no league table. Choose Everyone, Partners, Associates or Support at the top, or find one person.

Billing

Billing starts with what clients owe the firm, what is late, and what was paid this month. Under To do are the late bills to chase and the bills not sent yet. Every bill lists the rest: Waiting for payment, Late, Not sent yet, Paid, or All. Click any bill to open it.

Making a bill

1. Click New bill (or New bill on a matter’s Overview).
2. Choose the client, and the matter if there is one.
3. Set the issue date and the day you expect payment.
4. If time has been written down on the matter and not billed yet, it shows under Time written down, not yet billed. Untick anything that should not go on, choose one line for each person or for each piece of work, and click Add to the bill.
5. Under What the bill is for, add or change the lines, each with a description and an amount in ₦.
6. Add notes if you need them, and click Make the bill.

Bills are in Naira, with 7.5% VAT set (change it in Settings). Once you have given the bill to the client, open it and click Mark as sent.

Time on a bill shows On bill INV-… in each person’s Work Record, so it is never billed twice. To change a bill, open it and click Change the bill. Time already on this bill lists its time: untick time to take it off (it waits for the next bill), and add new time the same way. Taking time off does not change the lines, so change or remove its line yourself. Cancel this bill gives all its time back.

Getting paid

Open the bill. It shows the Bill total, what has been Paid so far and what is Still owed.

Where a bill is

Each bill shows a short track — Made, Sent, Part paid, Paid — and a line saying where it is:

People

People shows everyone in your firm on FirmStack — their role, job title, and how many matters they are on — and anyone invited who has not joined yet.

Inviting a colleague

1. Click Invite a colleague.
2. Enter their email address.
3. Choose their role: Partner, Associate, Paralegal, Accounts or Secretary, or Admin for full access. Associate is chosen for you.
4. Add their job title if you like — for example, Senior Associate or Practice Manager.
5. Click Send invitation.

They get an email with a link to join, and have their role as soon as they accept. Until then they show as Invited, not joined yet. When someone leaves the firm, you can turn their access off.

Notifications

The bell at the top of every page shows how many unread notifications you have. Click it to open them.

Click a notification to mark it read, or click Mark all read. Press Escape to close the panel.

Settings

Settings is for the people who manage the firm, usually Admins. Open it from the sidebar.

Firm profile

Your firm’s name, type, location, address, and primary practice areas.

Billing defaults

Default currency (Naira out of the box; US dollars is also available) and VAT (7.5% out of the box). New bills use these values.

Time and rates

An hourly rate for each level in your firm (for example Partner, Senior associate, Associate and Pupil), and who is at which level. Rates are used only on matters billed by the hour. A new rate counts for time written down from then on; time already on a bill keeps its rate. Only people who manage the firm or make bills can see rates, and only an admin can change them.

Turn on Ask for time on every piece of work if you want time on everything, not only on matters billed by the hour.

Notifications & tips

Your firm’s time zone (Africa/Lagos by default), whether FirmStack sends task and deadline reminder emails, and whether help tips show across the app. Turn tips off once your team knows its way around.

Advanced

Most firms never need to change anything here. Advanced holds:

• Procedure templates — your own opening checklists and milestones for each type of matter. The defaults already cover CAC incorporation, tenancy notices, and common litigation steps.
• Roles & Access — opens the page where you give people roles and, if you need to, create custom ones.

Account security

Everyone manages their own sign-in security, whatever their role. Click your name at the bottom of the sidebar and choose Account security.

Two-factor sign-in

Two-factor sign-in means a stolen password is not enough to get into your account. We strongly recommend it for everyone, and especially for Admins and Partners.

1. Install an authenticator app — Google Authenticator, Authy, 1Password, or Microsoft Authenticator all work.
2. On Account security, click Enable two-factor authentication.
3. Scan the QR code with your app, or enter the setup key.
4. Enter the 6-digit code from your app and click Confirm and enable.
5. Save your recovery codes somewhere safe. Each one can be used once if you lose your phone.

Forgotten password

On the sign-in page, click Forgot password? We email you a link to set a new one. Use the same link to change your password at any time.

Roles & access

Each person’s role decides what they can see and do. You choose it when you invite them: Admin (full firm access) or one of the five built-in roles below. To change someone’s role later:

1. Go to Settings, open the Advanced tab, and click Manage next to Roles & Access.
2. Under Team access, choose a role for each person.
3. Tick Lawyer for qualified lawyers. Some legal actions are for lawyers only, whatever the role.

Built-in roles

Five roles cover most firms:

The What each role can do section on Roles & Access lists exactly what each role allows.

Custom roles

Need something different? Open Advanced: create or change roles on Roles & Access. Click New role, name it, choose its permissions, and click Save role. Most firms never need to.

Ethical walls

For a conflict or a lateral hire, a Partner or Admin can screen a colleague off a matter. On the matter’s Overview, click Team and access. Under Ethical-wall screens, choose the person, add a reason if you like, and click Add screen.

A screened person cannot see that matter or anything on it, even if their role gives them firm-wide access. The client’s basic contact details stay visible to them.

confidentiality & data minimisation

FirmStack is not a document vault. You get the full value of it without putting privileged case documents inside it.

Optional features

Two features are available for firms that want them:

• Discussions — internal threads on each matter, so the team’s decisions and action items sit with the file.
• Team appraisals — structured feedback for your lawyers and appraisal packs built from their recorded work.

They are switched off unless your firm asks for them. To switch one on, write to support@getfirmstack.com.

Frequently asked questions