Actionstep vs PracticePanther Legal Software

Clio

LEAP

8am MyCase

Clio is the legal AI platform for running your firm and doing the legal work. It’s ranked #1 on Capterra with the most 5-star reviews, and 400,000+ legal professionals in 130+ countries work in it.

LEAP is a cloud-based and AI-enabled legal software that integrates practice management, document automation, billing, and more in a unified platform.

8am MyCase is a legal practice and case management software designed for law firms of all sizes. 

Office Manager

They have never answered the phone when I've called for immediate support, so I've stop trying this and just email even though i feel like for the amount we are paying we should be receiving quicker support.

Practice Manager

I was frustrated at the start but online help was reasonable but not as good as live Technical Trainers

Attorney 

That being said, in four years I have only had one problem which lasted more than half a day, and it was probably addressed by customer service

Customize each of your matter & case types with a unique workflow, folder structure, custom data fields, document templates, billing arrangements, and reports. Process matters & cases more efficiently and ensure that nothing gets missed.

Access Controls/Permissions

Accounting

Accounting Integration

Accrual Accounting

Activity Dashboard

Activity Tracking

Alerts/Notifications

Archiving & Retention

Asset Accounting

Audit Trail

Automatic Backup

Automatic Billing

Backup and Recovery

Bank Reconciliation

Billable Items Tracking

Billable & Non-Billable Hours

Billing & Invoicing

Billing Portal

Billing Rate Management

Bulk Send

Business Process Automation

Calendar Management

Case Management

Case Notes

Check Writing

Client Management

Client Portal

Collaboration Tools

Communication Management

Compliance Management

Conflict Management

Contact Database

Contact Management

Contingency Billing

Contract/License Management

Credit Card Processing

Cross Ledger Posting

Customer Statements

Customizable Fields

Customizable Forms

Customizable Invoices

Customizable Reports

Customizable Templates

Data Import/Export

Deadline Management

Docket Management

Document Automation

Document Capture

Document Generation

Document Management

Document Storage

Document Templates

Electronic Payments

Email Management

Employee Management

Expense Tracking

Fee Calculation & Posting

File Sharing

Financial Management

For Legal Professionals

Forms Management

Full Text Search

General Ledger

Hourly Billing

HR Management

Invoice Creation

Invoice History

Invoice Management

Invoice Processing

Legal Case Management

Mobile Access

Mobile App

Mobile Payments

Multi-Currency

Online Invoicing

Online Payments

Payment Processing

Performance Metrics

Productivity Tools

Projections

Project Management

Real-Time Data

Real-Time Reporting

Receipt Management

Records Management

Recurring/Subscription Billing

Reminders

Reporting & Statistics

Search/Filter

Secure Data Storage

SSL Security

Task Management

Task Progress Tracking

Task Scheduling

Tax Calculation

Tax Management

Third-Party Integrations

Time & Expense Tracking

Proprietary

Actionstep

Web-based

Linux

Windows

Chromebook

Smokeball

PracticePanther Legal Software

CARET Legal

Practice Management

Principal

Actionstep is a blank slate that provides plenty of customisation when setting up a law practice, including templates and trust accounting.

Owner

I am a new user but so far I have used it to mange my client base and it is more than what I need.

Partner

We loved the ability to craft work flows based upon our specific practice. But we also had the flexibility to obtain pre-set work flows as well.

I like the client portal very much and the way I can track documents that I share with my clients and vice versa.

Director

The cost of licences has increased from the cheapest software on the market to one of the most expensive with the necessary integration to make it almost useable.

We started using Actionstep in 2019 but we quickly realised that it was not suitable for small law firms.

Principal and Director

It works, although aspects of the accounting side are a little clunky and some of the field names (for example in contacts) are inappropriate.

It has helped to automate case management and save time but the system is very glitchy and constantly "breaks".  

I can't see what type of law firm they could be targeting.

To migrate to another platform will cost a fortune.

BILLING: If you close your billing at the end of the month be prepared to manually enter Trust payments to allocate the funds on the closing date and not for the next billing cycle, since the automated billing will automatically post these payments on the date you are running them, not on the date which you wish will be allocated.

For a sole practitioner it's unaffordable.

Lawyer

The automation is fantastic. Once you learn how to use the triggers and actions effectively you can run a much smoother operation.

No option for 2 sales taxes, which is essential in my jurisdiction.

Setting up the system to integrate with office procedures is difficult and very expensive.

Customer service has gone downhill with its growth which appears common in software companies.

I now have to find another provider of a similar service which is time consuming and disruptive.

Lawpay: If you use lawpay their integration is useless since it only grabs new charges and does not include any past due amounts.

Office Manager 

There's no phones number anywhere to contact them.

The next number it generated was 653 and today the new number is 686.

It appears that this will not be viable to small firms.

When I signed up to Actionstep it was about AUD $80 per user per month.

Managing Member

I wish the software had better search functions including an ability to look up contacts by phone number.

lawyer

I get the most satisfaction when I get a new client and need to create a document that I have set up document assembly for, and am able to generate in seconds a document that would have taken an hour or more to create manually.  

Very fussy product which is very hard to customise.

INTEGRATIONS: If you're looking to switch to AS because of the integrations they offer make sure they actually work exactly how you intend them to.

Principal Lawyer

The ability to build my practice management system my way, using tools available within Actionstep and also through the integration of other applications.

Principal 

Clearly they are no longer interested in sole practitioners.

The price steadily increased over the next 5 years.

Emails "stored" in their system are lost and/or corrupted and are irretrievable.

The plug in drops off when the user logs into a different device

Solicitor 

All of the information for a legal file is arranged in the one user friendly place.

I mention this because I came to love the ability to create a unique email address for each and every matter, but I do acknowledge that the need for higher levels of security is the reason that this feature had to be retired.

I reckon there could be a better way to organise uploaded files.

Easy to use, intuitive, and in many ways better than Leap

Once a ticket is raised with their support you will be ignored.

I believe this is one of the best practice management programs available at a reasonable cost.

Customer Support

Pricing

Law Firm Management

Billing and Invoicing

Integrations

Email Integration

Client Document Portal

Small Business

Mid-size Business

Large Enterprises

Actionstep Software

No customer support. If you have an issue the support phone line is constantly busy and directs you to voicemail.

Owner Partner

PracticePanther did an excellent job with its ease of use, customer support, and value for the money.  

Sales manager

Its been amazing im truly happy with the product and service and will continue using it for as long as i can thankyou.

PracticePanther is the highest-rated, easiest-to-use, all-in-one law practice management software on the market. Trusted by tens of thousands of solo, small, and mid-sized law firms across 170+ countries, to automate and streamline firm operations on any device, anywhere.

Actionstep vs PracticePanther Legal Software Comparison (2026)

Actionstep

PracticePanther Legal Software

Overview

Video & Screenshots

Pricing

User reviews

Key features

Integrations

Alternatives