Migrate from Aderant Expert Sierra to Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales

Aderant clients map directly to Dynamics 365 Accounts. Client name becomes Account Name; billing address maps to Address fields. Expert Sierra clients without matter records become Accounts with no open opportunities. Parent-client hierarchies map to Parent Account lookup in Dynamics 365.

Each Expert Sierra matter maps to a Dynamics 365 Opportunity. Matter number is stored as a custom field (Matter_Number__c) for traceability. Matter description becomes Opportunity Name; responsible attorney becomes OwnerId via email match. Matter status (open/closed/archived) drives Opportunity State and StatusCode.

Aderant contact roles (responsible attorney, billing contact, referring attorney) map to Dynamics 365 Contact records. Contact name, email, phone, and address fields transfer directly. Multiple contact roles per matter create Contact-to-Opportunity associations via Opportunity Contact Role in Dynamics 365 and enable role-based reporting.

Aderant billing records become Dynamics 365 Invoice entities linked to the mapped Opportunity. Invoice number and invoice date map directly; billing amount becomes Invoice Total. Line items from Expert Sierra invoice details map to InvoiceDetail records in Dynamics 365 and preserve original billing period details.

Time entries attach to the mapped Matter-Opportunity. Original entry date, hours worked, description, and billing rate are preserved as custom fields on a TimeEntry__c Dataverse table. Attorney attribution stored via OwnerId. Billable vs. non-billable status maps to a custom picklist.

Expense records require a custom Dataverse table (Expense__c) since Dynamics 365 has no native expense entity. Fields include expense date, amount, category, description, and matter link (Opportunity lookup). Expense status (submitted/approved/paid) maps to a custom picklist and supports expense reporting workflows.

Expert Sierra documents attached to matters are exported and re-uploaded to Dynamics 365 SharePoint integration or stored as Notes with file attachments. Document name and original upload date are preserved. Large document volumes may require SharePoint document library mapping for compliance.

Trust account records have no direct Dynamics 365 equivalent. We create a TrustAccount__c custom Dataverse table capturing trust balance, client link (Account lookup), matter link (Opportunity lookup), and transaction history. Reconciliation status stored as a custom field and ensures audit readiness.

Expert Sierra per-attorney billing rates map to Dynamics 365 Product records or Price List Items. Each rate structure becomes a Product with a specific price. Linking rates to matters requires custom fields or integration with Dynamics 365's pricing engine for accurate billing.

Expert Sierra practice group assignments map to Dynamics 365 Business Units or Teams. Attorneys assigned to practice groups receive team membership in Dynamics 365, enabling practice-group-level reporting through security roles and team ownership which also supports resource allocation and workload distribution across the firm.

Parent-client relationships in Expert Sierra map to Parent Account lookups in Dynamics 365. Office-level hierarchies become child Accounts under a parent firm Account, preserving organizational structure for multi-location law firms allowing consolidated reporting and simplified client management across all offices.

Expert Sierra e-billing matter setup (client billing codes, matter billing codes, approval workflows) requires a custom Dataverse table (EBillingSetup__c). These configurations do not migrate automatically and must be rebuilt in Dynamics 365 or referenced for manual reconfiguration to ensure accurate billing gateway connectivity.