How do I create a disbursement?

This article explains how to create, manage, and distribute disbursement payments in Confido Legal

Create a New Disbursement

• Navigate to Send Money > Disbursements and click ‘New Disbursement’

• Complete the fields on the 'New Disbursement' form 

• • Amount: Enter the amount you would like to pay as a disbursement
  • Funding Account: Select the correct Funding Account for the payment to be made from
    • If you have multiple operating or trust bank accounts connected to your Confido Legal profile, you will be prompted to select the right account from the dropdown menu.

• • Client\Matter: Select if applicable 
    
    • If payment is intended for a client who is already saved in your Confido Legal account, you can select that client to auto fill their contact information. 
    • Skip ‘Client’ and ‘Matter’ fields if not applicable: 
      • If payment is intended for a client who is already saved in your Confido Legal account, you can select that client to auto fill their contact information.
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  • Authorized Identities: Choose or add verified contact methods for the recipient 
    • Each recipient must complete verification through their preferred phone or email before receiving payment. 
    • Please select one or both of these contact methods and verify the information is correct for the authorized recipient 
      • If the client is already stored in Confido Legal, the contact methods will be auto populated. You can also click ‘Add Email’ or ‘Add Phone’ to replace the verified contact method. 
      • You can add multiple verified recipients by adding more verified phone numbers or emails
      • If there is no client stored in Confido Legal, you will manually add the correct contact information for the recipient by clicking  ‘Add Email’ or ‘Add Phone’.

• • Default Methods: Toggle default payment ‘Methods’ if needed
    • Your firms default methods for issuing disbursements can be reviewed and adjusted in your account settings
      • Navigate to Settings > Disbursements 
    • There are two timeline options for disbursement payment methods.
      • Instant Deposit: Funds can be deposited to the recipients account within seconds or minutes via debit card or Zelle for a small fee. In this case the disbursement status will update to 'Delivered' when the payment is accepted 
      • 5-7 Business Days: For those who prefer to avoid all fees, they can choose to accept payment through their bank routing and account number which can take up to 5-7 business days to deposit. They can also select 'Request Check' if they prefer a paper check payment. 
        • If 'Request Check' is selected, the disbursement status will update to 'Check Requested' -- prompting you to send a check to the recipient manually
        • If ACH Bank Transfer is selected, the disbursement status will update to 'Funds in Transit' for 5-7 business days or until the deposit is completed, at which time it will update to 'Deposited'
    • If all methods are enabled in your default settings, you can leave the ‘Use Defaults’ box checked to allow the recipient to choose their preferred method. 
    • If you’d like to limit which methods the recipient can use to receive their payment, you can unselect ‘Use Defaults’ and only select the methods you want to make available for that payment. 

• • Create Draft: Click ‘Create Draft’ when finished 

• • Review and Approve Disbursements: Once you’ve added the disbursements you’d like to send, they will remain in ‘Draft’ status until approved. 
    • Click ‘Approve’ for each disbursement to generate the secure link to send to the recipient 

• • Distribute Disbursement links: Send secure disbursement links directly to each recipient. Once recieved, they will be asked to complete a verification step with their phone number or email included in ‘Authorized Identities’. After entering their verification code, the recipient can accept payment via instant deposit method (fee applies) or bank transfer. 
  • Check Live Status: Once the disbursement is paid to the recipient, the status in Confido Legal will update from ‘Approved’ to ‘Delivered’ in real time.