# Recheck settlement-sheet arithmetic Canonical page: https://agents.paretoid.com/workflows/recheck-settlement-sheet-arithmetic/ Category: Operations & Reporting Practice relevance: cross-practice. A general operational method. Review the stated tool and jurisdiction limits before use. Jurisdiction/provider scope: Compare draft figures with lawyer-approved amounts using exact cents and source IDs. Status: Proposed / not tested. The public source describes the problem. Documentation supports only the stated method components; no result from this recipe has been verified. Verification: Source methods and reported problems have been reviewed. We have not run the adapted workflow. The sample below describes expected behavior on synthetic data, not a customer result. ## The problem Compare draft figures with lawyer-approved amounts using exact cents and source IDs. Why it matters: A draft settlement sheet can omit a supplied deduction or contain a calculation error even when the fee amounts were approved. An exact-cents comparison gives the lawyer and accountant an arithmetic check before any separate disbursement decision. ## Sources and evidence - pain: [Pain evidence: Disbursement sheets don't get reviewed by attorney](https://www.reddit.com/r/paralegal/comments/1ws0re9/disbursement_sheets_dont_get_reviewed_by_attorney/) Disbursement sheets don't get reviewed by attorney, 28 September 2026, recent, original read. OP says lawyers decide the fee but do not check whether the draft figures are right, and some sheets were wrong. Review Process for Disbursement Sheets, 11 September 2026, older just outside window; comments through September 15 describe missing late invoices and omitted expenses. The proposed check addresses arithmetic and supplied-item completeness, not unknown liabilities. - pain: [Pain evidence: Review Process for Disbursement Sheets](https://www.reddit.com/r/paralegal/comments/1wdgyjb/review_process_for_disbursement_sheets/) Additional self-reported public account; no independent identity or outcome verification. - method: [Method: SUM](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/excel/functions/sum-function) Microsoft SUM and ROUND document arithmetic components. No native settlement expertise is claimed. Lawyer supplies every fee, cost, lien/reserve amount and any rounding policy. - method: [Method: ROUND](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/excel/functions/round-function) Additional official capability reference. The complete adapted recipe has not been tested. Source checked: October 15, 2026. Pain accounts are self-reported. Documentation supports components; this adapted recipe and prompt have not been tested. ## Suggested approach Start when: Lawyer-approved monetary schedule plus draft disbursement sheet 1. recompute total deductions/net and compare line IDs/amounts 2. Keep source references and report unknowns instead of filling gaps. 3. The responsible reviewer checks the report before any separately approved action. ## What you need - Clio Manage Personal Injury add-on only for its native settlement export; otherwise actual draft and approved allocation documents must be available locally. - Lawyer-approved final gross amount and each permitted deduction, with status/source/approver. No AI entitlement, lien or fee determination. - Firm-approved Excel; optional Copilot entitlement and tenant approval for the exact minimized data. Native Excel analysis can be done manually if Copilot is absent. - Keep raw exports and identifying source pointers in a separate restricted location. The AI workbook contains only approved alias-based tables and visible policy/scope text, never raw client records on another tab. - Use synthetic inputs first. Keep real data in firm-approved accounts and processing, with appropriate access, confidentiality and retention controls. Aliases alone do not anonymize records. Never paste credentials, API keys or unnecessary client details. ## How to use Documentation-checked proposed route; source collection and human approval required - The settlement export reflects entered calculations, not legal approval, cleared funds or final lien resolution. - The kit uses integer cents for a two-decimal currency and approved fixed amounts. Fee percentages, tax treatment, deduction order or unresolved allocations must first be settled by the responsible lawyer. - Any missing/conflicted required approval, source, final status, gross evidence or line mapping blocks the final net comparison; only a clearly labeled partial subtotal may be shown. Access and setup: - Actual account access, plan and source-data completeness have not been tested. ### 1. Export the actual proposed settlement Tool: Clio Manage Personal Injury Location: Matters > selected matter > Settlement > top-right Export Download the native Settlement CSV. Inspect the Recovery summary and its refresh timestamp, recovery amounts, fees, expense groups, liens and outstanding balances. If the add-on is absent, open the actual draft settlement statement locally and manually transcribe its lines with page references. Expected output: Actual proposed settlement export/statement, with original line structure and total. Next step: Separately collect lawyer-approved amount/deduction evidence; do not use the draft as its own approval source. Check before continuing: Native grouping and default fee/deduction settings can differ from the approved arrangement. Preserve detail and avoid double-counting referral fees within legal fees. Execution status: Official documentation checked 2026-10-15; account and workflow not personally tested Step documentation: https://help.clio.com/hc/en-us/articles/18350703919899-Settlement ### 2. Map the observed records to the starter input Tool: Excel and authorized staff Location: Separate analysis workbook > Home > Format as Table Populate settlement.template.json: matter_id alias,currency,gross_cents; approved_lines with line_id,category,amount_cents,source_ref,approved_by,status from separate approval records; draft_lines with line_id,amount_cents from the actual draft; draft_net_cents from its stated net. Convert verified amounts to integer cents using the approved rounding rule. Put the same data in visible Control, ApprovedLines and DraftLines tables, with the approved deduction/sign convention and excluded unresolved items in Scope. Create named tables for Control, ApprovedLines and DraftLines. Put the policy and review scope in visible worksheets or paste them into the next prompt. Retain the actual gross-amount source and reviewer approval reference in visible Control/Scope; the JSON alone has no dedicated gross_source field. Expected output: Editorial settlement JSON and reviewed tables, with separate approval provenance. Next step: Check the mapping against each original source before using AI. Check before continuing: Aliases and missing policy fields are staff-created; do not relabel a native export as the kit schema. Unknown stays blank/unknown, not false or zero. Execution status: Official documentation checked 2026-10-15; account and workflow not personally tested Step documentation: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/excel/tutorial-import-data-into-excel-and-create-a-data-model ### 3. Review the bounded evidence with Copilot Tool: Excel Copilot, optional Location: Approved analysis workbook > Copilot icon at lower right > Chat only Use Chat only and submit the prompt. Without Copilot: sum only the approved final deduction amounts, then compare exact line IDs and the draft net. The manual fallback has the same mandatory completeness/approval stop before any final net comparison. Prompt: ```text Check Control, ApprovedLines, DraftLines and Scope. First verify complete required-line coverage, unique approved line IDs, currency/integer cents, gross source evidence, source_ref, approved_by, final status and unambiguous draft mapping for every required item. If any is missing, conflicted or unresolved, STOP the final expected-net and draft-net comparison: report the missing evidence, and at most a clearly labeled partial subtotal that is not a final net. Only after this gate passes, compare draft deductions to the complete approved final lines; flag missing, extra, duplicate or changed lines, and recompute expected_net_cents=gross_cents-sum(approved final deduction cents) under the supplied sign/rounding rules. Compare draft_net_cents. Do not infer lien validity, fee entitlement, settlement approval or authority to disburse. Return exact arithmetic and source references. ``` Expected output: Settlement arithmetic and authorization-evidence exception list. Next step: Copy the draft exception list to the reviewer; retain row references. Check before continuing: Check every flagged row and the scope. A fluent answer is not evidence of completeness; no automatic workbook or source-system edits. A partial approved subset may yield a labeled partial subtotal only, never an expected final net. Execution status: Official documentation checked 2026-10-15; account and workflow not personally tested Step documentation: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/excel/copilot/get-started-with-copilot-in-excel https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/excel/copilot/frequently-asked-questions-about-copilot-in-excel ### 4. Approve the review result Tool: Responsible staff reviewer Location: Reviewed local worksheet The lawyer verifies gross proceeds and all final deductions against actual signed/approved source records; accounting independently checks arithmetic and cleared-funds requirements outside this tool. Expected output: Reviewed draft statement or unresolved-allocation hold. Next step: Any external message, source change, payment or deletion requires its own authorized process. Check before continuing: This workflow neither sends a settlement statement for signature nor approves or executes disbursement. Execution status: Official documentation checked 2026-10-15; account and workflow not personally tested Step documentation: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/excel/tutorial-import-data-into-excel-and-create-a-data-model ## What you will get An arithmetic-difference worksheet with source IDs, duplicate or omitted lines and review questions about an already prepared proposed allocation. ## Human review and limits Lawyer confirms completeness, legal allocations, client approval and any required statements; accountant independently checks math. No actual bank details or personal data needed for pilot. No transfers, check requests, payment execution, release decision or legal/financial advice. The assistant drafts or reports only. Check source records and review the output before a human performs any separately approved send or change. No automatic legal decision, money movement, account connection or publication is included. What to measure: In a synthetic pilot, count correctly found exceptions, false alarms, and unresolved inputs. No time or cost saving is assumed. ## Original prepared-input schema settlement.json = {matter_id,currency,gross_cents,approved_lines:[{line_id,category,amount_cents,source_ref,approved_by,status}],draft_lines:[{line_id,amount_cents}],draft_net_cents}. category is fee|cost|lien|reserve|other; status is approved|unresolved. All deduction amounts nonnegative integer cents; gross is approved. Any unresolved item blocks a complete arithmetic report. Synthetic example input: ```text Gross 10000000 cents; FEE=3000000, COST=100000, LIEN=2000000, RESERVE=50000, all approved. Draft omits RESERVE and shows net 4900000. ``` Expected synthetic output: ```text deductions 5150000; calculated net 4850000; draft net overstates by 50000; missing RESERVE source flagged. Duplicate COST must be separately reported, not silently removed and approved. ``` Failure check: Lawyer confirms completeness, legal allocations, client approval and any required statements; accountant independently checks math. No actual bank details or personal data needed for pilot. No transfers, check requests, payment execution, release decision or legal/financial advice. ## Starter files Native blank scaffolds and original synthetic examples may use different schemas. Follow NATIVE-INPUT-MAPPING where supplied. These files do not connect accounts or install automation. - [Download starter kit](https://agents.paretoid.com/assets/starter-kits/q04-starter-kit.zip) — All inputs, synthetic examples and review notes in one ZIP. No automation is installed. - [Start here: get the sources and prepare the review](https://agents.paretoid.com/assets/starter-kits/q04/START-HERE.txt) — Documentation-checked acquisition, explicit manual mapping, exact prompts and human review limits - [settlement blank input](https://agents.paretoid.com/assets/starter-kits/q04/settlement.template.json) — Preserve nested input structure and validate supplied field types - [settlement synthetic fixture](https://agents.paretoid.com/assets/starter-kits/q04/settlement.example.json) — Preserve nested input structure and validate supplied field types - [settlement JSON Schema](https://agents.paretoid.com/assets/starter-kits/q04/settlement.schema.json) — Preserve nested input structure and validate supplied field types - [Setup and fixture review guide](https://agents.paretoid.com/assets/starter-kits/q04/README.txt) — Recipe-specific setup, input rules, offline prompt, expected result and boundaries ## Optional original prepared-input prompt Destination: Your firm-approved AI assistant · prepared files This original prompt uses its own prepared-input schema. Do not mix it with native-step tables without the supplied mapping. ```text Using this synthetic settlement.json, validate integer cents and one currency, required source references and approval IDs. Missing approval/source data is unresolved. Sum approved deductions exactly once by line_id and subtract from gross. Compare each approved line and amount with draft_lines; flag missing, extra or duplicate IDs, amount differences and unresolved items. Return approved deduction sum, calculated net, draft net, difference and source-linked exceptions. Do not choose fees, resolve liens, determine entitlement, infer missing costs, approve disbursement, create payment instructions or change records. If any item is unresolved, label the worksheet incomplete for lawyer review. INPUTS settlement.json = {matter_id,currency,gross_cents,approved_lines:[{line_id,category,amount_cents,source_ref,approved_by,status}],draft_lines:[{line_id,amount_cents}],draft_net_cents}. category is fee|cost|lien|reserve|other; status is approved|unresolved. All deduction amounts nonnegative integer cents; gross is approved. Any unresolved item blocks a complete arithmetic report. OUTPUT An arithmetic-difference worksheet with source IDs, duplicate or omitted lines and review questions about an already prepared proposed allocation. Use only these synthetic or firm-approved inputs and preserve source row/page IDs. Keep missing or conflicting evidence unresolved. Return a draft for the named reviewer. Do not send messages, connect accounts, change records or permissions, move money, or make legal decisions. Keep source files unchanged. List missing prerequisites before continuing. ``` Proposed / not tested · editorial prompt Published by Law Firm Agents. Proposed adaptation; not tested. Not legal advice.