Your client wants a LEDES file and your invoice is a PDF. Upload the invoice below and get a LEDES 1998B text file with one row per time entry and expense, plus the same data in Excel for your own review.
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Corporate legal departments and insurers run outside counsel bills through e-billing systems that expect a LEDES file. A PDF is an image of a bill. The portal needs each time entry as a row it can check against billing guidelines, and it rejects anything else.
Small firms and solo attorneys often invoice from a word processor or general accounting software. The first corporate or insurance client with an e-billing mandate turns every invoice into a formatting project.
LEDES 1998B repeats the invoice number, dates, total and matter on each line item row, followed by units, rate, codes and timekeeper details. Typing that by hand for a forty line invoice is about a thousand cells.
Fields are separated by pipes and every row ends with square brackets. A pipe inside a narrative, a date typed as 9/30/2026 or a missing terminator is enough for a portal to refuse the upload.
The specification defines the invoice total as the sum of the line item totals. A courtesy discount shown only at the bottom of the PDF breaks that sum unless it is written as its own adjustment row.
On the client side, firms that will not send LEDES leave the legal operations team with PDFs. Nobody can report spend by timekeeper or task code from a stack of images.
Legal practice management systems export LEDES well, but migrating matters, rates and trust balances to satisfy a single client costs far more than converting the invoices you already produce.
ReceiptOCR reads the invoice with a field set built for legal bills, shows you every extracted value next to the page it came from, and writes a LEDES 1998B file from the reviewed data. You keep invoicing the way you do now.
The export opens with the LEDES1998B line, then the 24 field header row, then one pipe delimited row per line item, each closed with square brackets. Dates are written as YYYYMMDD.
Each fee line carries the timekeeper ID or initials, full name, classification, hours, hourly rate and line total, read from the invoice.
Task codes such as L120, activity codes such as A104 and expense codes such as E101 are captured where the invoice prints them and placed in the correct LEDES columns.
Line write downs go into the adjustment field as negative amounts. An invoice level discount becomes its own IF adjustment row, so the rows sum to the invoice total.
Upload a month of invoices for one client as a batch and export a single LEDES file. The specification allows more than one invoice number per file.
The same header and line data downloads as a spreadsheet, which is what legal operations teams use to analyze outside counsel spend by timekeeper, matter and task.
Four steps. The review is the one that deserves your attention.
In your account pick the ready made field set named Legal Invoices (LEDES). It tells the engine to look for matter numbers, billing period, timekeepers, rates and UTBMS codes.
Drop in one invoice or up to 50 files at once. Native PDFs from Word or accounting software, scans and phone photos are all read.
Check the header fields and each time entry against the page. Correct anything the invoice printed ambiguously, such as a classification implied by a job title.
Click the LEDES 1998B export to download the text file. Add the client matter ID if your client assigns one, then submit it through the e-billing portal.
What goes into the file, what you still need to check, and how the options for producing a LEDES invoice compare.
You bill from Word, QuickBooks or a simple time tracker and one client now insists on LEDES through its e-billing vendor.
You submit invoices for several attorneys and need files that pass the first time, without retyping narratives into a template.
Some of your outside counsel still send PDFs. Convert them so every bill lands in the same structure as the LEDES ones.
You audit fee petitions and insurance defense bills and need every entry as a sortable row with hours, rate and code.
Short answer: a PDF to LEDES converter reads the header and every time entry and expense on a law firm invoice, then rewrites them as a LEDES 1998B file, the pipe delimited text format with 24 fields per row that e-billing portals accept. ReceiptOCR does this from PDFs, scans and photos. You review the extracted lines against the page, export the file, and add the client matter ID if your client uses one. It is available on every paid plan, starting at $49 a month.
LEDES1998B[] INVOICE_DATE|INVOICE_NUMBER|CLIENT_ID|...|CLIENT_MATTER_ID[] 20260930|10457|ACME01|2024-0117|2415.00|20260901|20260930|Smith v. Dalton|1|F|2.50||1125.00|20260904|L120||A104|JRM|Review and analyze opposing motion|12-3456789|450.00|Morales, Jane|PT|[]
Illustrative invoice. The last field, the client matter ID, is empty because a firm invoice does not print it.
Pick the Legal Invoices (LEDES) field set, upload the PDF, review the extracted header and line items, and click the LEDES 1998B export. The download is a plain text file that starts with the line LEDES1998B[] and contains one row for every fee and expense entry. If your client assigns its own matter numbers, type that value into the last field of each row before you submit, since it does not appear on the invoice itself.
The quality of the result follows the quality of the invoice. An invoice that prints the date, timekeeper, hours, rate and amount for each entry converts cleanly. An invoice that shows only a block narrative and one total has nothing to split into rows, and no converter can invent the detail. For those, itemize the invoice first, then convert.
The LEDES Oversight Committee describes 1998B as an ASCII, pipe delimited format containing 24 fields, and states that it is not intended to be modified in the future. That stability is a large part of why e-billing portals still ask firms for it. Every row repeats the invoice level fields and then describes one line item.
| LEDES 1998B field | Where it comes from on your invoice | Filled by the converter |
|---|---|---|
| INVOICE_DATE, INVOICE_NUMBER | Invoice header | Yes, date rewritten as YYYYMMDD |
| CLIENT_ID, LAW_FIRM_MATTER_ID | Client number and matter number as your firm prints them | Yes, when printed |
| INVOICE_TOTAL | Invoice total | Yes |
| BILLING_START_DATE, BILLING_END_DATE | Billing period on the invoice | Yes, when printed |
| INVOICE_DESCRIPTION | Matter name | Yes |
| LINE_ITEM_NUMBER | Order of entries on the invoice | Yes, numbered automatically |
| EXP/FEE/INV_ADJ_TYPE | Whether the line is a fee, an expense or an invoice level adjustment | Yes, as F, E, IF or IE |
| LINE_ITEM_NUMBER_OF_UNITS, LINE_ITEM_UNIT_COST | Hours and hourly rate, or quantity and unit cost | Yes |
| LINE_ITEM_ADJUSTMENT_AMOUNT, LINE_ITEM_TOTAL | Line discount or write down, and the line amount | Yes, discounts as negative values |
| LINE_ITEM_DATE, LINE_ITEM_DESCRIPTION | Entry date and narrative | Yes, pipes and brackets removed from narratives |
| LINE_ITEM_TASK_CODE, LINE_ITEM_ACTIVITY_CODE, LINE_ITEM_EXPENSE_CODE | UTBMS codes printed next to the entry | Only when the invoice prints them |
| TIMEKEEPER_ID, TIMEKEEPER_NAME, TIMEKEEPER_CLASSIFICATION | Initials or ID, name and title of the biller | Yes for fee lines |
| LAW_FIRM_ID | Firm federal tax ID | Yes, when printed on the invoice |
| CLIENT_MATTER_ID | The client own matter number, usually not on a firm invoice | No, left empty for you to add |
Two rules in the specification cause most rejections. The invoice total must equal the sum of the line item totals, and each line total must equal units times unit cost plus the adjustment. The converter writes an invoice level discount as a separate IF row so the first rule holds. The second depends on the invoice arithmetic, so if a line on your PDF does not multiply out, fix it during review.
Draft the invoice the way you do now, save it as a PDF, and convert it. The invoice needs four things for a clean file: a dated line for every time entry, the timekeeper on each line, hours and rate shown separately, and your firm tax ID somewhere on the page. If the client billing guidelines require UTBMS codes, print them on the invoice next to each entry. The converter carries codes across but never guesses one, because a wrong task code is worse than a missing one.
This route suits firms with a handful of LEDES clients. If most of your revenue is billed through e-billing portals, practice management software that records time against task codes from the start will serve you better. For the general case of pulling invoice line items into rows, or for the vendor bills a law office receives, see invoice extraction for legal teams.
| Route | Starts from | What it costs | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Practice management software with a LEDES export | Time entries recorded in that system | A per user subscription plus the migration | Firms billing most work through e-billing portals |
| Thomson Reuters Legal Tracker AI converter | A PDF uploaded inside Legal Tracker | Included with Legal Tracker Advanced or added to a standard subscription, bought by the client | Firms whose client runs Legal Tracker and has switched the feature on |
| Building the file by hand in a spreadsheet | Your own typing | Staff time, roughly 24 cells per entry | A single short invoice, once |
| ReceiptOCR PDF to LEDES converter | The PDF, scan or photo of the invoice you already issue | $49 a month on Starter for 2,500 pages, $149 on Plus for 10,000 | Firms with a few LEDES clients, and legal departments receiving PDFs |
The Legal Tracker row deserves a note. Thomson Reuters documents that its converter turns PDFs and other non LEDES invoices into LEDES and that the person who submitted the invoice must review and correct it before final submission. It only helps when your client uses Legal Tracker and has enabled it for your firm. Clients on other portals still need a file from you. Plan limits and current rates for ReceiptOCR are on the pricing page.
Yes. Legal operations teams use the same conversion in the other direction: a firm sends a PDF, and the department turns it into rows so the bill can sit beside LEDES invoices from other firms. Many teams skip the LEDES file and export straight to Excel, where a pivot by timekeeper, task code and matter answers most spend questions. The invoice PDF to Excel converter covers that workflow for any invoice type.
Upload the PDF to a converter that reads legal invoices, review the extracted header and time entries, and export a LEDES 1998B file. In ReceiptOCR you choose the Legal Invoices (LEDES) field set, upload up to 50 invoices, check each line against the page, and download a pipe delimited text file ready for the e-billing portal.
Yes. ReceiptOCR converts PDF, scanned and photographed law firm invoices into LEDES 1998B on every paid plan, from $49 a month. Thomson Reuters also offers an AI converter inside Legal Tracker, which works only when your client uses that system and has enabled it.
A LEDES invoice is a text file, not a document layout. You either export it from billing software that recorded your time entries, type it by hand following the 24 field specification, or convert an existing PDF invoice. Conversion is the quickest route when you already produce itemized invoices in Word or accounting software.
LEDES 1998B is a plain text invoice format for legal billing. The LEDES Oversight Committee describes it as ASCII, pipe delimited, with 24 fields. The file starts with the line LEDES1998B[], then a header row, then one row per fee or expense entry, each ending in square brackets.
A LEDES 1998B file is plain text, and the converter downloads it as a .txt file. Some e-billing portals publish a naming convention. Rename the file to match your client instructions before uploading.
Yes, by way of a PDF. Save or print the Word or Excel invoice as a PDF and upload that. The converter reads the printed entries, so it does not matter which program produced the invoice, only that each time entry shows a date, timekeeper, hours, rate and amount.
QuickBooks invoices save as PDF. To send one to an e-billing portal, save the QuickBooks invoice as a PDF and convert it. Make sure the invoice template shows the service date, the timekeeper, quantity as hours and the rate on every line, since those become LEDES fields.
It keeps the codes your invoice prints and places them in the task, activity and expense code fields. It does not assign codes to uncoded entries. Choosing a code is a billing judgment, and a wrong code leads to a rejected or reduced invoice.
The file follows the LEDES 1998B structure, which is what the portal checks first. Portals then apply client rules such as approved timekeepers, rate caps and required codes. Add the client matter ID, confirm classifications, and review against the billing guidelines before submitting.
No. The export is LEDES 1998B only. If your client requires 1998BI, LEDES 2000 or an XML version, check with them whether 1998B is accepted before relying on this file.
The LEDES export is included in every paid ReceiptOCR plan. Starter is $49 a month, or $288 billed yearly, for 2,500 pages a month with up to 25 pages per document. Plus is $149 a month for 10,000 pages with no page limit per document. There is no per timekeeper or per seat charge.
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Vendor bills, court fees and client cost recovery.
Every invoice line as its own row.
The spreadsheet route for spend analysis.
Convert a month of invoices in one batch.
How the engine reads invoices of any layout.
Another ready made field set, for vendor onboarding.
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