Lynda Artesani
The perfect business partners. When you get to know Lynda Artesani and Sarah Prevost, that's what you get. The duo complement and counterbalance each other perfectly. In other words, they’re the yin and yang of The Proper Trust LLC.
Formed together in 2018 by Lynda’s Artesani Accounting and Sarah’s Mintage Labs, Proper Trust now has 15 employees and services clients in more than a dozen states and Canada. Their client base is attorneys and law firms in need of modernization and updating of their accounting systems.
But Proper Trust won't take on just any law firm in need of modernization; they know when to decline a prospective gig. Their sweet spot is mid-market firms with multiple partners, often in multiple locations and multiple states. These firms require more than just workflow automation
—they need forecasting and budgeting, employee retention strategies and other advisory services.
Sarah Prevost
Did I say multiple states? Why yes, I did. They are well versed in the differences among the various state bar associations and their mandates for compliance. And yes, I mentioned Canada, so they can handle the provincial bar associations and the dreaded GST/HST as well.
These are seriously experienced and knowledgeable consultants.
Oftentimes, Proper Trust will be approached by attorneys from law firms passed down within a family from one generation to the next. The older generation was used to doing everything the old fashioned way, on paper. Heaven forbid someone got sick, went away or there was fire or water damage.
The younger generation of lawyers is burdened by the old processes and the older generation’s philosophy that states, “This is how we’ve always done it,” while knowing full well there are newer, better ways. They are ready to embrace and combine new technology with legal practices.
For example, Proper Trust will take law firms from the old method of pre-billing on paper and approving on paper—both gobblers of time and space—to approving pre-bills right on the screen.
Lynda and Sarah, for their part, know exactly how to talk to attorneys, the psychology involved in communicating and negotiating with them. They also understand what it is that attorneys value.
This is where the “yin” and the “yang” come into play. Each partner has a different method of communicating, and whoever has the style best suited to a particular client will take the lead in speaking with them.
They offer the following services:
- Data migration (from old-school options such as Abacus or PC Law to cloud accounting powerhouses QBO or Xero combined with an integrated cloud-based legal app such as LeanLaw or Clio)
- Cleanup
- Integrations with other apps such as Dext and Reach Reporting
The Proper Trust does not offer potential clients a choice among three pricing options (such as Platinum, Gold, and Silver). Instead, Lynda and Sarah assess what a client needs and offer one price for the package of services they prescribe. If the client doesn’t accept it, they’re not the right client for Proper Trust.
End of story, next...
There are plenty of attorneys and firms who respect their expertise and know-how, and therefore will not question what they are offering.
You would think Lynda and Sarah have little time for anything else, given that they each have their own practices in addition to Proper Trust. But then you would be wrong. In addition to all their business ventures and personal lives, they speak at state bar associations and host Legal Accounting Wednesday, a 15-minute discussion about law firm issues on Facebook Live.
And for those curious about working in this niche, Lynda and Sarah also host the Accountant’s Law Lab, a private space for other accounting professionals to learn about working with attorneys and law firms. They meet once a week and, as of this writing, have covered 25 legal accounting topics.
As Lynda and Sarah put it, the Law Lab is best for accounting professionals who:
- Are new to working with attorneys
- Want to create a niche for their firms
- Want to learn more about the legal profession/industry
You can imagine that the number of law firms looking to move to the cloud has increased tremendously over the last two years. The attorneys and law firms are there, just waiting for qualified professionals to help them.
Lynda and Sarah have done the heavy lifting for you and can introduce you to the law firm niche. Interested? Check them out.
Lynda Artesani
Sarah Prevost