How it works
The weekly reconciliation cycle
Shtim runs on a defined cadence so that the state of the account is never a question of when someone last looked at it.
Before the first reconciliation
Shtim begins from a clean, reconciled opening position. We do not reconstruct history.
Firm and account details
Legal name, contacts, and the users who will have portal access. For each account: nickname, bank, the last four digits, account type, and any IOLA designation.
Opening matter balances
A list of open matters and the amount held for each, entered manually, uploaded from a spreadsheet, or pasted from Excel. The total is compared against the opening account position.
Agreement, payment, activation
The engagement agreement is executed electronically and stored with its version, signer, and timestamp. The setup fee and recurring payment authorization are collected, and Shtim reviews before activation.
Each week
Open the period
The reconciliation ordinarily begins on Sunday and covers everything posted since the previous cutoff.
Capture posted activity
Posted transactions are taken from view access to the account or from an imported bank file. Each separately posted line is treated as its own transaction. Pending items are picked up in the period in which they post.
Attribute to matters
Transactions are assigned where the matter can be reliably identified — from check images, transaction detail, established mappings, or information your firm has previously supplied.
Route what is unresolved
Everything else goes to the firm’s unassigned queue with the date, description, amount, and any check or reference number.
Compare and identify
Aggregate matter balances are compared with the posted bank balance. Any difference is reported rather than absorbed.
Finalize the period
Period dates, bank balance, matter total, difference, transaction count, included capacity, and overage are preserved. Later corrections create a revision trail rather than overwriting the record.
Your part of the cycle
Answering the open items
Shtim does not investigate your files. When a transaction cannot be identified from the information available, it goes to the firm with everything needed to answer it in a few taps.
Your firm selects an existing matter or requests a new one, enters who the funds were paid to, and chooses a payee type — client, attorney fees, third party, other, or a deposit where the field does not apply.
| Date | Transaction | Amount | Ref / check | Matter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 22 | Check 1045 | −3,400.00 | 1045 | Choose matter → |
| Aug 22 | ACH credit — NORTHRIDGE LLC | +9,750.00 | — | Choose matter → |
| Aug 23 | Wire out — ref 88041 | −15,000.00 | 88041 | Choose matter → |
Your firm selects the matter, enters who the funds were paid to, and chooses a payee type. Submissions are reviewed by Shtim before they affect the official reconciliation.
Illustration of the unassigned queue — sample data
Service calendar
Sundays, and the weeks that are not
Shtim performs no services on Shabbat or on Jewish holidays observed by Shtim. When an observed holiday falls on a scheduled Sunday, the reconciliation resumes on the next eligible Sunday and covers the whole accumulated period — and your included transaction allowance accumulates with it.
A standard week
On a 20-transaction tier, the period includes 20 transactions before overage applies.
A week with an observed holiday on Sunday
No reconciliation begins on the observed Sunday. The next reconciliation covers both weeks, and the allowance aggregates to 40 transactions. Two skipped Sundays aggregate to 60. Overage is calculated only after the accumulated total is compared with the aggregated allowance.
Subscription fees continue during weeks in which reconciliation is deferred for an observed holiday.
Status
What the portal tells you at a glance
Reconciled
The period is finalized and aggregate matter balances agree with the posted bank balance.
Pending client information
One or more transactions are waiting on matter or payee information from your firm.
Admin review
Submissions from your firm are with Shtim for review before they affect the official record.
Difference detected
Matter balances and the posted bank balance do not agree, and the difference is reported to the firm.
Holiday carryover
A scheduled Sunday was an observed holiday. The next reconciliation covers the accumulated period.
Setup pending
The opening position has not yet reconciled, so the account is not active.
Next step
Enroll a trust account
Enrollment happens online: choose the weekly capacity, enter your open matters and their balances, execute the engagement agreement, and set up payment. If you would rather talk it through first, ask us instead.