LegalCaseTools

Matter Budget Tracker

Compare spend to date against budget, project the final cost from percentage complete, and see the variance before it arrives.

Last reviewed

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Free · No sign-up · Runs in your browser

A budget overrun is almost never a surprise to the arithmetic - only to the people who did not do it. By the time a matter has consumed sixty percent of its budget at forty percent complete, the final number is already visible.

This tracker makes it visible early. It projects the final cost from spend to date and percentage complete, and reports the variance while there is still time to have a conversation about it.

Your numbers

Results update as you type. Nothing is sent anywhere.

Budget
Actual
Progress

Result

Projected total

$42,400

Variance against budget

$12,400

Status
Projected over budget
Budget total
$30,000
Spend to date
$21,200
Budget remaining
$8,800
Budget used
70.67%
Variance percentage
41.33%
Projected hours
110
Hours variance
30

This tool performs arithmetic on the values you enter. It does not provide legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship.

The projection assumes the remaining work costs the same per unit of progress as the work done so far - which is optimistic on litigation and pessimistic on repeatable transactional work.

Percentage complete is a judgement call. Base it on phases finished rather than on time spent, or the projection just restates the spend.

How to use the matter budget tracker

  1. Enter the budgeted hours, rate and expenses agreed for the matter.
  2. Enter the hours actually recorded so far, the rate they were recorded at, and expenses incurred.
  3. Estimate the percentage complete based on phases finished, not on time spent.
  4. Read the projected total and the variance.

What people use this for

  • Monitoring an active matter against an agreed budget.
  • Deciding when to raise a scope conversation with a client.
  • Reporting matter status to a client who requires budget updates.
  • Reviewing after closure whether the original estimate was realistic.

Worked examples

Every figure below is produced by running this calculator against the example inputs, so the numbers always match the tool.

A matter tracking over

Budgeted at 80 hours and $350 with $2,000 of expenses; 55 hours recorded at $360 with $1,400 spent, at 50% complete.

Projected total
$42,400
Variance against budget
$12,400
Status
Projected over budget

A matter tracking under

The same budget with 30 hours recorded at 50% complete.

Projected total
$23,400
Variance against budget
-$6,600
Budget remaining
$18,300

Percentage complete is the hard input

Everything else in this calculation is a fact. Percentage complete is a judgement, and it is the input that decides the projection.

Base it on phases finished rather than on time spent, or the projection simply restates the spend. If half the budget is gone and you describe the matter as half complete because half the budget is gone, the tool will confirm you are exactly on budget - which is circular and useless.

The projection is optimistic on litigation

It assumes the remaining work costs the same per unit of progress as the work done so far. That holds reasonably well for repeatable transactional work and poorly for litigation, where the expensive phases are usually at the end.

For a contested matter, treat the projection as a floor rather than a forecast. The useful signal is the direction and the size of the variance, not the precision of the final figure.

Methodology and assumptions

What this calculator does, and what it deliberately does not do.

  • Budget total = budgeted hours × budgeted rate + budgeted expenses. Actual to date uses the actual rate and expenses.
  • The projection divides actual spend by percentage complete and scales to 100%.
  • The projection assumes remaining work costs the same per unit of progress, which is optimistic on contested matters.
  • The tool performs arithmetic or date counting on the values you enter. It does not interpret a rule, a statute or a contract.
  • Nothing you type is transmitted or stored - the calculation runs entirely inside your browser.

This website provides general informational and productivity tools and does not provide legal advice or create an attorney-client relationship.

The date and deadline tools count days exactly as you instruct them. They do not interpret court rules, statutes of limitation, filing requirements or any other legal authority, and they do not know the rules of your jurisdiction.

Always verify any date, fee, or calculation against the governing rule, the court calendar and your own professional judgement. If you need legal advice, consult a lawyer licensed in your jurisdiction.

Frequently asked questions

How do I estimate percentage complete?

By phases finished against phases planned. Time spent is not a measure of progress, and using it makes the projection circular.

When should I raise a variance with a client?

As soon as the projection is materially over, not when the budget is exhausted. Clients accept scope conversations far better in advance than in arrears.

Should expenses be in the budget?

Whichever way your engagement letter handles them, provided you are consistent. Excluding disbursements is common and avoids the budget moving with third-party costs.

Is a variance always a problem?

No. Scope changes legitimately move a budget. What matters is whether the change was identified and agreed, or simply happened.

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