Generating a Report

In this article

• Part 1: Selecting the Report 
• Part 2: Choosing Your Filters and Generating Your Report 
• Additional Notes About Reports 

Actionstep includes many pre-built reports that help you explore the matters, billing, accounting, and trust accounting areas of your Actionstep system. Reports are grouped into these categories and cover the types of data you are most interested in. 

The process for creating a report varies by report. Some reports use a newer-looking workflow, while others workflows are older. All reports include options for customizing the type of data you want included in the report. And depending on the report type, you can print or save the report and optionally associate it with a specific matter. 

Part 1: Selecting the Report 

1. In Actionstep, click the Reports menu and choose the type of report you want to create. Your options include reports in the following categories: 
   • Matter 
   • Billing 
   • Accounting 
   • Trust 
2. On the Reports page. select the report you want to generate. A page appears showing you the filters available for that report.  
3. Proceed to Part 2: Choosing Your Filters and Generating Your Report. 

TIPS: 
• The toggles along the top of the page let you view multiple report types at once.
• Use the Search all reports field to search for a report by name.
• If you have a report you regularly use, click the star next to the report name and it will be saved to the Favorites list.

Part 2: Choosing Your Filters and Generating Your Report 

Once you select a report, you are taken to the filters page for that report.  

What the filters look like depends on the report itself. Some reports have a newer look and feel, while others use an older style workflow (which also varies slightly based on the report): 

Example of Newer Report Style	Example of Older Report Style

To generate a report using the newer report style: 

1. Complete the steps in Part 1 to select the report you want to create. The report page appears.  
2. Optionally, if you want to use a report configuration you've already saved, select it from the Saved Configurations panel. (See Saving a Report Configuration for more details.)
3. Choose the filters you want applied. Typically your filters let you choose what data you want included and how you want it organized. Note that most reports using the newer style include both Basic and Advanced filters.  
4. Once your filters are selected, choose one of the following options: 
   • On screen (HTML): Choose this option to display the report results directly in your web browser. This is useful if you want to verify the report contains the information you want before you save and download a copy of it.  
     NOTE:  The generated report has options to Reload it, Print it, or save it as an Excel or PDF. You can also click Show settings to review and adjust your filters in case you need to further refine your report data.
   • PDF: Choose this option to print/save a PDF version of the report.  
     NOTE:  Once you select and complete this option, Actionstep adds additional options: Save PDF file to a matter and View PDF again. (If you choose to view the PDF, the PDF viewer may cover these options. Close the preview window to view them again.)
   • MS Excel: Choose this option to save and download a Microsoft Excel file (.XLSX) to your computer. This is a great option if you need to perform further calculations in a spreadsheet format. 
     NOTE:  Once you select and complete this option, Actionstep adds a Save XLSX to a matter option.

To generate a report using the older report style:

1. Complete the steps in Part 1 to select the report you want to create. The report page appears. 
2. Optionally (and if they're available for your report), use a report configuration you've already saved. To do this, select it from the Saved Configurations panel. (See Saving a Report Configuration for more details.)
3. Choose the filters you want applied. Typically your filters let you choose what data you want included and how you want it organized.  
4. Once your filters are selected, click the option that will generate the report. This is often a Generate or Submit button. Or, in some cases, there may be a Refresh icon that lets you update the report in real time. 
5. Depending on the report, there may also be options for saving a copy of the report. Look for options that say Print, PDF, or Excel. 
6. Additionally, most generated reports include an option to review your filters and regenerate the report. This is usually done by clicking the Show report settings button.  

Additional Notes About Reports 

When viewing an HTML version of a report, sometimes data in the report is clickable. Using these links will usually take you to that area of Actionstep. For example, if you click a participant name, the link will most likely take you to that party's contact record.  

Once you generate a report, the top of the report includes a list of the filters and settings you applied. You can use this information to understand how or why the data is being included in the report:

Some reports are built in real-time, meaning as you select your filters, the report is updated directly below the filters. You can use the options associated with the report to change your criteria or refresh the data in the report: