The law firm ops stack (2026)

The rule

This is an operations stack for a US solo or small firm — roughly 1–25 timekeepers. It is not a craft stack. We will not rank AI brief writers, deposition summarizers, or research chatbots. That catalog is Aiacent, on purpose. If the leak is the writing, leave. If the leak is unbilled time, a trust account in Excel, and the founder’s personal checking, stay.

The default stack

• Practice management: Clio if you want the hiring-market default (starts at $49/user; higher tiers quoted). MyCase if you want a published card (Basic $50 / Pro $100 annual). PracticePanther Solo $49 annual if you want QBO-adjacent seats without Clio gravity.
• Intake: Clio Grow only if intake is the leak. HubSpot Free if a practice file already exists and you only need a contact layer. Do not buy both.
• Books: QuickBooks Online Essentials or Plus, with a CPA who has done IOLTA. LeanLaw-class connectors exist; appoint one path into QBO. Wave is not a trust file.
• Payments: the practice system’s processor (Clio Payments / LawPay-class). Offer ACH. Card fees on a $15,000 retainer are the real line item.
• Payroll: Gusto Simple ($49 + $6) when the first W-2 appears. Workforce if the books already live in QBO.
• Banking: operating and trust as separate accounts at a real bank that understands IOLTA. Mercury is for operating, not your trust account. Ask counsel and the bank.
• Entity / agent: home-state LLC or PC via LegalZoom $0 + state fee or Northwest $39 + state fee. We are not your ethics counsel on entity choice.

Practice

Matters are the system of record. Clio, MyCase, or PracticePanther — pick one. Time that is not in the matter will not be on the invoice. Document storage belongs in the practice file or a DMS the firm already pays for, not a fourth Drive. Calendly is fine for consults; the engagement letter still lives in the practice system.

HubSpot is a layer, not a replacement. See the law-firm CRM ranking. Pipedrive will not hold trust. If you are arguing HubSpot vs Pipedrive, you are shopping the wrong aisle.

Money

As of September 20, 2026: MyCase Basic $50/user annual; PracticePanther Solo $49 annual; Clio from $49/user; QBO Essentials $85 / Plus $140; Gusto Simple $49 + $6. Clio Payments publishes card and ACH rates on the pricing page (card commonly ~2.95%, ACH ~1% — confirm live). This is not trust-accounting advice. Three-way reconciliation belongs to a human who has done it.

Open operating checking in the entity name before the first retainer. Trust sits next door at a bank that will do IOLTA. Sub-accounts on Relay are not a substitute for a statutory trust account. See LLC banking and Is Relay worth it for operating cash only.

What to skip

• An enterprise practice suite because a consultant said Litify.
• Rippling for a four-attorney shop.
• A second invoice tool “for backup.”
• AI drafting tools as a buying criterion for the ops stack.
• Personal Venmo as the retainer account.