4 FourthStair
Built for the business of practicing law

Better visibility.
Better decisions.

FourthStair helps law firms turn information already in Clio Manage into clearer decisions about matter funding, recorded time, billing review, and everyday operations.

Explore the software →Future pilot partnerships

Developed and actively refined through real-world use inside a Colorado law firm.

Designed around actual law firm workflowsClio Manage integrationGoogle Workspace integrationMicrosoft 365 under consideration
The software

Practical tools for the work between the work.

FourthStair brings financial guidance, timekeeping visibility, billing preparation, and reviewed reporting into a connected workspace. It complements Clio rather than replacing it.

Matter CapacityExample view
Example matterStatusHours left
Matter AAttention-2.5
Matter BLow1.8
Matter CAvailable9.3
Matter DAvailable14.1

Fictional illustration, not a live client report.

01 / Financial awareness

Know when a matter needs funding attention.

Matter Capacity expresses available financial work capacity as estimated remaining attorney hours. It helps teams spot matters that are running low, already over budget, or need setup corrections.

  • Hourly, retainer, and flat-fee scenarios
  • Configurable capacity thresholds
  • Attorney-focused views and firm-wide reporting

Guidance only. FourthStair does not automatically prevent work or override professional obligations.

Time MetricsExample view
Example timekeeper A7.5 / 5.5 h
Example timekeeper B5.2 / 5.5 h
Example timekeeper C3.3 / 5.5 h
DailyPerformance
WeeklyRecaps
YearlyTrends

Fictional illustration.

02 / Timekeeping clarity

Understand the hours behind the work.

Compare recorded time with firm goals and see when entries were created. Account for employee start dates, holidays, and paid leave instead of relying on oversimplified daily totals.

  • Daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly views
  • Employee-specific goals and PTO adjustments
  • Time-entry timing and observed change history
Billing reviewExample comparison
Saved in ClioProposed change
Review client emailReviewed client correspondence
0.20 hours0.20 hours
Review pendingPrivate draft saved
Review entriesCompare versionsPreserve drafts

Illustrative example, not an actual Clio record.

03 / Billing preparation

Review billing entries before they become invoices.

Give employees a place to review their own work while administrators can inspect entries across employees and matters. Proposed edits are kept separate until an authorized user explicitly saves them to Clio.

  • Side-by-side saved and proposed values
  • Private drafts, approvals, and observed history
  • Eligible entry editing and combination

Invoice creation and finalization remain in Clio.

Reviewed email reportsIllustrative composition
04 / Communication

Turn reports into useful conversations.

Prepare and visually edit operational reports before sending them through an authorized Gmail account. Staff can review the actual message instead of copying tables between applications.

  • Editable report tables and messages
  • Per-user Gmail authorization
  • Human-reviewed sending, not automatic blasts
Our approach

Designed to surface problems earlier.

The goal is not another dashboard full of numbers. It is to make important operational signals understandable to the people who can act on them.

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Make information actionable

Translate complicated financial and timekeeping records into clear, practical views.

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Keep people in control

Review and judgment stay with the firm's team. Guidance does not replace professional decisions.

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Work with existing systems

Use Clio as the operational source while preserving FourthStair's own reviews, settings, and observed history.

Why FourthStair exists

Built inside the day-to-day reality of a law firm.

FourthStair began as a response to recurring challenges in an operating Colorado law firm: understanding which matters could support more work, keeping time reporting clear, and making billing preparation less burdensome.

Instead of building around assumptions about legal practice, the software is being developed and refined through real use alongside attorneys and legal operations staff.

Built through real-world use
Practical by design

FourthStair is developed around real operational workflows, with features refined through hands-on use and feedback.

Looking ahead

Interested in becoming a future pilot partner?

FourthStair is still being developed and refined through internal use. We're interested in connecting with a small number of law firms that may want to evaluate the platform and help shape its next phase when outside pilots become available.

Law firms using Clio ManageOperations-minded leadershipThoughtful product feedbackGoogle Workspace todayMicrosoft 365 interest welcome

There is no public signup or immediate onboarding yet. Tell us a little about your firm and what you'd like FourthStair to help solve. Short answers are fine, and only your firm name, name, and email are required.

Your answers will be sent to hello@fourthstair.com using a third-party form delivery service (FormSubmit). Please don't include confidential client information. Submitting opens a separate tab and does not enroll your firm in a pilot.

Prefer email? Contact us at hello@fourthstair.com.