Are you overpaying?
Quick Take
- Many law firms are overpaying for eCheck/ACH processing. LawPay and ClientPay charge 1%, but recently removed the $10 cap. That means a $10,000 eCheck payment now costs 10X more: $100 instead of $10. With a modern legal payments platform like PayQ, it’s always just $1 per transaction.
- Modern payment platforms with lower processing fees enable firms to keep one stream of online payments instead of separating eChecks out via their bank.
What's Changed
LawPay & ClientPay removed their eCheck fee cap:
- Previously: 1% fee, capped at $10
- Now: 1% with NO cap
- A $10,000 payment now costs $100 instead of $10
To address this, what many firms do is split their credit card and eCheck processing up. They’ll use LawPay/ClientPay for credit cards, but then go to their bank for eCheck/ACH.
Why This Isn't The Perfect Solution
Splitting up your payment processing comes with a number of challenges:
- Two payment streams: Confuses clients with different experiences
- No stored payment data: Neither option remembers client information and account preferences, or allocates payments line-by-line for reconcillation
- Accounting burden: More work tracking payments from multiple sources
Moving to a Modern Payments Platform
The goal with online payments should be to make things easier for everyone. LawPay and ClientPay opened up the market for law firms to accept online payments and in those early days of limited providers, they charged a premium for doing so (and still do!). However, addressing the necessary compliance for legal is no longer rare and we’re starting to see the same kind of transparent pricing in legal that is common in other industries.
Review the 2025 Law Firm Merchant Account Comparison to learn more.
With PayQ, we "found money" that used to go directly to credit card companies.
Bottom line:
Firms no longer have to overpay for eCheck processing just because it’s “law firm-specific.” Transparent pricing options now exist—without premium rates:
- Firms can reduce eCheck/ACH processing fees
- Modern payment platforms streamline payments & accounting
Learn more about PayQ Law Firm Payments Processing.