CORE SERVICE
3-Way Reconciliation. To the penny. Every month.
The bar doesn’t accept “close enough.” Your bank statement, trust ledger, and every client ledger must match — exactly. Ethnum performs your monthly three-way reconciliation so the numbers are always right, always documented, and always delivered on time.
What Ethnum delivers
All
US jurisdictions — your state's format, followed exactly
What Is 3-Way Reconciliation?
The gold standard your bar requires — and the one most firms get wrong.
A three-way reconciliation reconciles three distinct records simultaneously: your trust bank statement, your firm’s internal trust ledger, and the sum of all individual client ledger balances. All three must agree to the penny. If any one leg is off — even by a dollar — the reconciliation fails.
It’s the most fundamental compliance requirement in legal trust accounting, and it’s required monthly by virtually every US state bar. Yet it’s also the most commonly skipped, delayed, or performed incorrectly — often because the person doing it doesn’t understand what they’re actually reconciling or why each leg matters.
Ethnum performs three-way reconciliation for law firms across all 56 US jurisdictions. Every month, without reminders, your reconciliation is completed by a dedicated legal accounting specialist and delivered by the 10th — documented, and audit-ready from day one.
Leg 1
Bank Statement — actual cash in your trust account at the bank
Leg 2
Trust Ledger — your firm's internal record of all trust activity
Leg 3
Client Ledgers — sum of every individual client's trust balance
The Requirement
All three must match — to the penny — every month
Ethnum Delivery
Reconciliation report delivered by the 5th, every month
What's Included
Everything your monthly reconciliation requires — handled end to end.
Every item below is completed by your dedicated Ethnum accountant, every month, without you lifting a finger or sending a reminder.
Full Three-Way Reconciliation
The complete reconciliation — all three legs — performed monthly. Bank statement, trust ledger, and the sum of every client balance. All three reconciled and confirmed to match.
- Bank statement balance reconciled to trust ledger
- Trust ledger reconciled to sum of all client ledgers
- Every discrepancy investigated and resolved
Trust Ledger Maintenance
Your firm's internal trust ledger is kept current and accurate throughout the month — not just at reconciliation time. Every deposit and disbursement posted correctly as it happens.
- All trust transactions categorized and posted
- Ledger kept current between reconciliation cycles
- Cleared vs. outstanding items tracked precisely
Per-Client Ledger Reconciliation
Every client matter with a trust balance gets individually reconciled. Opening balance, deposits, disbursements, and closing balance — verified for every single client, every month.
- Individual ledger reconciled per active client matter
- Zero-balance confirmation for closed matters
- Negative balance alerts flagged immediately
Discrepancy Investigation
When the numbers don't match — and they sometimes don't, especially on new accounts — we trace the discrepancy to its source, document the finding, and resolve it completely before delivering your report.
- Transaction-level investigation of any mismatch
- Root cause documented with details
- Resolution confirmed before report delivery
Monthly Reconciliation Report
A clean, reconciliation report in your state's required format — documenting all three legs, the reconciliation date, and your accountant's confirmation that balances agree.
- State-specific reconciliation format followed
- All three balance legs shown and confirmed
- Prepared and delivered by your dedicated Ethnum specialist
Audit-Ready Documentation
Every reconciliation report, supporting ledger, and bank statement is organized and stored for audit access. If your bar calls, you'll have everything they need — immediately.
- Historical reconciliation records organized and retrievable
- Supporting documentation stored per reconciliation
- Direct support if you receive a bar inquiry
HOW IT WORKS
From your first month to every month after — here's the process.
Once you’re onboarded, your three-way reconciliation runs automatically on a fixed monthly schedule. You receive the report — you don’t produce it.
The Problem We Solve
What goes wrong when three-way reconciliation isn't done right.
These are the exact situations Ethnum clients came to us to fix — and to prevent from ever happening again.
Reconciliations skipped or months behind
When reconciliation slips — even by one month — small errors compound. A $50 discrepancy in January can become a $3,000 mystery by June that's nearly impossible to trace.
- Ethnum reconciles on a fixed monthly schedule. No slippage, no backlogs building up.
Only two legs reconciled instead of three
Many firms — and even some bookkeepers — reconcile the bank statement to the trust ledger but never verify that client ledger balances match. That's only two legs. The bar requires all three.
- Every Ethnum reconciliation verifies all three legs, every month, without exception.
Discrepancies buried or left unresolved
When a reconciliation doesn't balance, some bookkeepers force-balance it or simply note the variance and move on. That's a compliance failure — and a growing problem.
- Every discrepancy at Ethnum is investigated, traced to source, and fully resolved before the report is delivered.
Wrong format for your state bar
Some state bars require specific reconciliation formats. Even correct reconciliations can fail if the format is wrong.
- Ethnum follows the exact format required by your jurisdiction — tracked across all 56 US states and territories.
The Three-Leg Checklist
Bank statement balance confirmed — ending balance per the bank statement, adjusted for outstanding items
Trust ledger balance confirmed — firm's internal trust ledger reconciled to the bank
All client ledgers matched — every client balance confirmed against the trust ledger total
Zero negative client balances — no client ledger is permitted to go below zero
Outstanding items cleared — all outstanding checks and deposits identified and aged
Report delivered by the 10th — dated confirmation delivered to your inbox on schedule
Before Ethnum: most new clients have never had a true three-leg reconciliation performed
93
Average Ethnum Trust Score
After 90 days with Ethnum, clients average a 93/100 compliance health rating — up from an average of 61 at onboarding.
Who This Is For
If your firm holds client funds, this service is built for you.
Every law firm that holds client funds in trust is required to perform monthly three-way reconciliation. The firm size, trust volume, or practice area doesn’t change that requirement
Firms Behind on Reconciliation
Months or years behind? That's exactly why we built our clean-up process. We work backward to establish a clean baseline, then maintain your reconciliation monthly going forward.
Solo Practitioners
You're doing everything yourself. Reconciliation is one of the highest-risk tasks to DIY. We take it completely off your plate so you can focus on practicing law.
Small & Mid-Size Firms
Multiple attorneys, multiple client matters, and a trust ledger that gets more complex every month. We handle the complexity and ensure every client account reconciles cleanly.
High-Volume Trust Activity
Personal injury, real estate, and settlement-heavy practices with many active client trust balances. High volume is our sweet spot — transaction count doesn’t overwhelm us.
New Law Firms
Start with the right habits. We configure your trust accounting infrastructure correctly from the first client retainer so you never have a backlog problem to solve later.
Firms That Failed a Bar Audit
If your firm has already received bar scrutiny over your trust account records, we move fast — establishing compliant reconciliation immediately and maintaining it going forward.
Jurisdiction Coverage
Your state's reconciliation format. Known exactly. Followed always.
Three-way reconciliation requirements vary significantly by state — format, frequency, supplementary schedules, and documentation standards. Ethnum tracks every jurisdiction’s specific rules.
All
US jurisdictions with active reconciliation format tracking
Monthly
Reconciliation frequency — required in all 56 jurisdictions
10th
Delivery date — report in your inbox every month without fail
0
Unresolved discrepancies left on any Ethnum client account
Reconciliation requirements we track by jurisdiction:
- Required format — some states specify exact reconciliation templates; others accept any format that captures all three legs
- Supplementary schedules — several states require additional listings of outstanding checks, deposits in transit, or client balance summaries
- Record retention — how long reconciliation records must be maintained varies from 5 to 7+ years depending on jurisdiction
- Timing requirements — some states require reconciliation within a specific number of days of receiving the bank statement
- Overdraft notification rules — your reconciliation process must account for how overdraft notices are handled in your state
- Multi-account requirements — firms with multiple trust accounts must reconcile each account separately, every month
Your Monthly Deliverables
What lands in your inbox by the 10th of every month.
Three deliverables. Fixed schedule. No chasing. Your dedicated Ethnum accountant prepares, reviews, and sends everything — you just receive it.
- Delivered by the 10th
Three-Way Reconciliation Report
The primary compliance document — all three legs reconciled, confirmed to match, and by your dedicated accountant in your state's required format.
- Bank statement balance (adjusted for outstanding items)
- Trust ledger balance confirmation
- Sum of all client ledger balances
- Dated, and ready for your records
- Delivered by the 10th
Client Ledger Balance Summary
A complete listing of every client matter's trust balance at month end — showing opening balance, total in, total out, and closing balance for each client.
- Per-client opening and closing balance
- Total deposits & disbursements for month
- Zero-balance confirmation for closed matters
- Flags for any unusual or aged activity
- Updated Monthly
Ethnum Trust Score Update
Your firm's compliance health rating updated every month — reflecting reconciliation accuracy, discrepancy history, timing, and overall ledger integrity.
- Score from 0–100 across 5 compliance dimensions
- Month-over-month trend tracking
- Flags for any dimension below threshold
- Action items if your score dips below 90
Works With Your Stack
We connect to the software you already use.
No migration, no disruption. We pull data directly from your existing practice management and accounting platforms — typically configured within 48 hours of onboarding.
What Attorneys Say
From attorneys who made the switch.
Common Questions
3-Way reconciliation — answered plainly.
A 3-way reconciliation reconciles three records simultaneously: your trust bank statement, your trust ledger, and the sum of all individual client ledger balances. All three must match to the penny. It's the gold standard required by virtually every US state bar — and the most commonly skipped.
Most state bars require monthly reconciliation of trust accounts. Some jurisdictions specify it must be completed within a certain number of days of receiving your bank statement. Ethnum performs reconciliation monthly for every client, delivered by the 10th of each month.
We investigate the discrepancy immediately, trace it to the source transaction, document the finding, and resolve it. You receive a full explanation of what caused the mismatch and how it was corrected. Nothing is buried or left unexplained.
Yes — this is one of our most common onboarding scenarios. We've reconciled backlogs of 2+ years for new clients. We work through the backlog systematically, establish a clean baseline, then maintain your account monthly going forward.
Yes. The number of clients doesn't change the bar requirement. Even a solo attorney with one trust client is required to perform monthly 3-way reconciliation in most jurisdictions. The simpler the account, the faster and less expensive the reconciliation.
Pricing depends on the number of trust accounts, active client matters, and transaction volume. Most solo and small firm engagements range from $400–$1,000/month — typically 60–70% less than an in-house hire. Schedule a call for a firm-specific quote.
Ready for reconciliationdone right — every month?
Schedule a free 20-minute discovery call. We’ll review your current reconciliation setup, identify any gaps, and show you exactly what Ethnum will do — with no obligation.