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Abacus Payment Exchange (APX)

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Abacus Payment Exchange (APX), available in AbacusLaw by CARET v23.22 and above, is a payment solution that uses a single platform to process accounts and bill clients so you get paid quickly. With APX, there are no hidden fees or long-term contracts. Only a 3% flat fee is charged for credit card transactions ($1 for ACH), and that fee is deducted from an operating account to ensure trust account balances stay accurate. APX accepts most payment options including Mastercard, Visa, E-Checks, ACH, American Express, and Discover.

To see a video demonstration of this feature, watch this Video.

Index

 

Setting Up APX

  1. Select File > Setup > Company Preferences. The Company Preferences window appears.
  2. Select the Credit Card Setup tab.
  3. Set Processor to Abacus Payment Exchange (APX).
  4. Click Learn More / Apply Now.
  5. The APX web page appears. Click Get Started and then follow the on-screen instructions to sign up for APX.

    apx_02.png

  6. When you are finished, click Done on the Company Preferences window’s Credit Card Setup tab.
  7. Restart Abacus Accounting to finalize the APX setup.

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Adding Credit Card/ACH Accounts to a Matter

Although credit card/ACH information is added to matters, the information is actually linked to the client record. Therefore, you only need to add this information for a client one time. If you have a different matter for the same client, perform this procedure, but when you check Allow credit card or electronic checks for the bill payments, any credit card/ACH information stored for the selected client will automatically link, making it unnecessary to reenter the information.

  1. Select Matters > Matters. The Matters Browse window appears.
  2. Highlight the matter you want to work with and click Open.
  3. The Matter Maintenance window appears. Select the CC Info tab.

    matter_maint_cc_info.png

  4. Check Allow credit card or electronic checks for the bill payments.
  5. Always charge credit card or electronic check automatically for bill payments is checked by default when you allow credit cards/electronic checks. Remove the check if you do not want payments to automatically charge the client’s primary credit card when posting the bill.
  6. Click Add.
  7. The Save Payment Information window appears. Do one of the following:

    If you want to add a credit card, select Credit Card, complete the information for the credit card, and click Submit.

    save_payment_info_cc.png

    If you want to add e-check or ACH information, select E-Check/ACH, complete the information, and click Submit.

    save_payment_info_ach.png

  8. You can add up to two credit cards for a client. However, only the primary credit card is charged. To charge the secondary credit card, make it the primary card by highlighting the card and clicking Make Primary.
  9. Click Done to save your changes.

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Making a Payment

  1. Make your client payments as usual and check Charge credit card /ACH for this payment and APX will handle the payment.
  2. If the client/matter is not set up for credit card/ACH use, when you click Charge credit card/ACH for this payment while entering a client payment…

    apx_03.png

    …then the following prompt appears:

    apx_04.png

  3. When you click Yes, a form appears where you can set up a payment method for the client.

    apx_05.png

  4. After clicking Submit, the Matter Maintenance window's CC Info tab opens for the matter. Here, the user can complete the settings for credit card/ACH usage.

    apx_06.png

  5. Upon saving, the normal client payment process continues.

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Voiding APX Credit Card Transactions

Credit card transactions processed through APX can be voided.

Exceptions:

  • There is a 24- to 48-hour window (depending on the credit card issuer) in which you can void. Once this window has passed and the transaction has been cleared and processed, you will have to manually enter reversal entries and issue a check.
  • Payments that have appeared on a bill (when the status in the Matter Billing Activity is Billed) cannot be voided.

Follow these steps to void APX credit card payments:

  1. Select Matters > Matter Billing Activity. The Matter Billing Detail window appears. Select the matter.
  2. Select the transaction you want to void. NOTE: The transaction might be broken into several transactions, depending on how it was applied (Fees, Hard Costs, Soft Costs, etc.). It is only necessary to void one of these associated transactions because voiding one will void all of them. All associated transactions will have the same Transaction ID.
  3. Click Void.

    void_cc_01.png

  4. A window will appear asking you if you are sure you want to void the transaction. Click Yes.

    void_cc_02.png

  5. If you get a notification like this, click OK.

    void_cc_03.png

  6. A void report is printed. Click Yes to continue.
  7. A notification window appears. Click OK.
  8. Reversal entries are created in the Matter Billing Activity as well as the General Ledger. Reversal entries are made on all applicable accounts: Operating, Fee Revenue, Hard Cost Revenue, etc.

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Voiding APX Trust Deposits

Trust deposits made using APX can be voided.

Exception:

  • There is a 24- to 48-hour window (depending on the credit card issuer) in which you can void. Once this window has passed and the transaction has been cleared and processed, you will have to manually enter reversal entries and issue a check.

Follow these steps to void an APX trust deposit:

  1. Select Trust > Matter Trust Activity.
  2. The Matter Trust Activity window appears. Highlight the trust deposit and click Void.

    void_trust_01.png

  3. A window will appear asking you if you are sure you want to void the transaction. Click Yes.
  4. Another window appears asking you if you are sure you want to delete the trust deposit. Click Yes.
  5. A void report is printed. Click Yes to continue.
  6. Reversal entries are created in the Matter Trust Activity as well as the General Ledger. Reversal entries are made on all applicable accounts: Trust and Trust Liability.

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APX Reporting

The Credit Card & ACH Billing Statement report downloads the billing statement directly from APX. The report shows only successful transactions (payments and trust deposits) and will not include any rejected ones.

NOTE: To see rejected transactions, generate the Credit Card Activity report, which includes all successful credit card payments, trust deposits, and voids as well as all failed attempts (i.e., credit card had insufficient funds or was expired).

To generate the report:

  1. Select Reports > Billing.
  2. Highlight Credit Card & ACH Billing Statement.

    apx_reporting_01.png

  3. Complete the criteria for the report.
  4. Click Preview. The report opens.

    apx_reporting_02.png

 

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