---

name: efirm-finance-wip-aging-report
description: Use when a law firm finance team needs to identify and act on unbilled work-in-progress (WIP) that is aging beyond acceptable thresholds. The skill lists all unbilled time and expenses by age bucket, matter, attorney, client, and practice area; highlights write-off candidates and clients requiring interim bills; and produces partner-facing action emails. Relevant to all law-firm jurisdictions.
license: MIT
metadata:
id: efirm-finance.WIP-aging-report
category: efirm-finance
jurisdictions: [multi]
priority: P1
intent: [wip, finance, aging, billing, write-off, revenue]
related:
- efirm-finance-realization-rate-tracker
- efirm-finance-utilization-dashboard
- efirm-finance-trust-account-reconciliation
- efirm-matter-summary-for-billing
source: Louis — HAQQ Legal AI (github.com/sboghossian/mini-claude-for-legal)
version: "1.0"

WIP Aging Report

When to use this

Use this skill to:

• Run the monthly or weekly WIP review to identify stale unbilled time before it becomes uncollectable.
• Prepare the partner billing meeting — each partner sees their matter list sorted by WIP age.
• Identify matters where an interim bill is overdue (WIP exceeds agreed billing cadence or credit limit).
• Flag likely write-off candidates before year-end so provisions can be made.
• Monitor whether fee-capped matters are approaching their cap (remaining fee capacity vs. remaining WIP).

WIP left unbilled degrades over time: clients forget the work, dispute the descriptions, or face their own budget pressure. The longer WIP ages, the more likely it is to be written down or off.

Core concepts

What is WIP?

Work-in-progress (WIP) is time entered and expenses recorded against a matter that has not yet been invoiced. It sits on the firm's balance sheet as an asset until billed (when it becomes accounts receivable) or written off (when it becomes a loss).

Age buckets

Bucket	Days since entry	Risk level
Current	0–30	Low — normal billing pipeline
Aging	31–60	Moderate — follow up with billing partner
Old	61–90	High — requires reason; consider interim bill
Stale	91–180	Very high — write-off candidate unless justified
Critical	180+	Near-certain write-off territory; escalate to managing partner

Firms set their own thresholds; the above are common defaults. Adjust to firm billing policy.

Required inputs

Input	Source
WIP extract from billing system (all unbilled entries)	Billing system (Clio, Elite, Aderant, etc.)
Matter details (client, practice area, responsible partner)	Matter database
Billing policy thresholds (WIP credit limit, billing cadence)	Firm policy document
Fee-cap / budget amount per matter (if applicable)	Engagement letter or fee quote
Prior WIP report (optional, for trend comparison)	Prior period file

Report structure

Summary dashboard

WIP AGING REPORT — [Firm] — [Report Date]

AGE BUCKET    | # Matters | WIP $ Value | % of Total WIP
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
0–30 days     |           |             |
31–60 days    |           |             |
61–90 days    |           |             |
91–180 days   |           |             |
180+ days     |           |             |
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
TOTAL         |           |             | 100%

FLAGS: [count of matters in each flag category — see below]

Detail: by matter (drill-down)

For each matter in the 61+ day buckets:

Matter:            [ID / Short Title]
Client:            [Name]
Practice:          [Group]
Responsible:       [Partner]
Total WIP:         
  — Time:           (Y hrs × avg rate )
  — Expenses:      
Oldest entry:      [Date] ([N days ago])
Fee cap remaining:   (or N/A)
Billing cadence:   [Monthly / Milestone / On demand]
Last invoice:      [Date]
FLAG:              [See flag types below]

By partner

Summarize total WIP by responsible partner, sorted descending, with their oldest WIP date highlighted. This is the input to partner billing meetings.

By client

Aggregate WIP across matters per client. Flag clients whose aggregate WIP exceeds any agreed credit limit.

Flags

Flag	Trigger	Action
WIP exceeds billing cadence	WIP age > agreed billing cycle (e.g., >30 days for monthly-billing matter)	Generate interim bill
WIP > client credit limit	Aggregate client WIP > firm's defined credit limit for client	Hold new work until bill issued + paid; or get partner authorization
Stale WIP — write-off candidate	Any WIP entry >90 days (default threshold)	Partner review; write-off or produce explanation + billing plan
Fee-cap at risk	WIP + billed fees > 85% of matter cap	Alert responsible partner immediately; scope discussion needed
Inactive matter with WIP	No time entries for >60 days but WIP outstanding	Matter may be on hold or closed without billing — investigate
Expenses aging	Expense entries >60 days unbilled	Disburse to client ASAP; aging expenses signal billing process failure

Partner action email

For each partner with flagged WIP, the skill generates a draft email:

Subject: WIP Review Action Required — [Partner Name] — [Month]

Dear [Partner],

Your current WIP summary as of [Date]:

  Total WIP:           
  WIP in 60+ buckets:   ([Z]% of your total)
  Matters requiring action:

  1. [Matter 001] —  WIP — [Flag: Stale / Cap risk / Credit limit]
     Suggested action: [Issue interim invoice / write off  / partner note required]

  2. [Matter 002] —  WIP — [Flag]
     Suggested action: [...]

Please confirm actions by [Date]. Finance will process approved write-offs and bills
in the [Month] billing cycle.

[Finance Team]

Year-end considerations

• WIP provision: Stale WIP (90+ days) should be provisioned at a discount (commonly 50–100% depending on age and client history) for financial reporting purposes.
• Revenue recognition (US GAAP / IFRS 15): Law firms must assess whether WIP is realizable; firms using cash-basis accounting write off WIP when it is determined not collectible.
• Tax: Write-offs must be documented with partner sign-off to support tax deduction in most jurisdictions.

Jurisdictional notes

• MENA practices: Year-end timing varies across the GCC (Hijri year vs. Gregorian). Run WIP aging using Gregorian calendar for international billing, but align internal review with firm's fiscal year.
• Lebanon: Currency considerations require WIP denominated in USD vs. LBP to be tracked separately; assess collectibility in functional currency.
• UK SRA: Firms using the SRA-compliant billing ledger must ensure WIP descriptions are sufficiently detailed to support the invoice narrative requirements.

Related skills

• [[efirm-finance-realization-rate-tracker]]
• [[efirm-finance-utilization-dashboard]]
• [[efirm-finance-trust-account-reconciliation]]
• [[efirm-matter-summary-for-billing]]
• [[efirm-finance-partner-comp-allocator]]