This question screens for a candidate's ability to maintain billing accuracy and prevent overbilling or underbilling, which can damage client trust and create ethical issues for the firm. It also reveals whether the candidate takes initiative to verify records rather than passing errors through.
Structure the answer using STAR with a specific past example. Emphasize verification steps, who you escalated to, and the concrete result. Focus on protecting the firm and client relationship.
Start by grounding your answer in the specific system you used, whether it was Clio, TimeSolv, or a simple spreadsheet, and describe the moment you noticed the mismatch, perhaps a date that did not align with the actual court filing or a task description that did not match the engagement letter. Explain that you did not silently correct it on your own, because in legal billing, changing a time entry without approval can itself be a compliance issue, so you flagged it to the supervising attorney with the evidence laid out plainly. Say that you proposed the corrected version, asked for explicit sign-off, and then updated the draft invoice before it went to the client, noting that you also double-checked the final PDF against the approved numbers. If you can, mention a habit you have, like reconciling the invoice against the case activity log every Friday, so the interviewer sees this was not a one-off but part of your normal workflow. Keep your tone professional but not apologetic, and if you are speaking in a Taglish register, switch to full English when describing the correction itself to show you can handle the legal nuance. Close by stating the outcome in terms of client trust and the firm avoiding a billing dispute, which is what the interviewer actually wants to hear.
Some Filipino candidates say 'I will just trust the attorney's entry po' or over-apologize with 'Sorry po, baka ako po nagkamali.' Instead, say: 'I would verify the entry against the case activity and the engagement letter, then bring the discrepancy to the supervising attorney for approval before changing anything.'
Situation
In my previous role as a billing support assistant for a small law firm, I was preparing a monthly invoice for a corporate client when I noticed one time entry looked unusually high compared with the case activity log.
Task
I needed to verify the entry against the attorney's notes and correct any mistake before the invoice was finalized and sent to the client.
Action
I pulled the case file and the time-tracking software report, then compared the disputed entry with the client's engagement letter and the attorney's calendar. I found that a 1.5-hour entry had accidentally been duplicated because the attorney changed the narrative but forgot to delete the original. I flagged it to the supervising attorney, obtained approval to remove the duplicate, and adjusted the invoice narrative to match the actual task.
Result
The corrected invoice was issued on time, and the client did not raise any billing questions. The firm updated its pre-billing review checklist to include a check for duplicate time entries.
Always cross-check time entries against source documents before finalizing any client invoice.
Write your own answer, then get instant AI feedback graded against:
Get AI feedback on your answer — free.
3 free AI-graded answers + 1 free mock interview, no card needed.
Sign Up FreeAlready have an account? Log in
Sign in to join the conversation.
No answers shared yet — be the first to show how you'd approach this.