Aderant Expert Sierra

Supergood | Aderant Expert Sierra API

Alex Klarfeld

Alex Klarfeld

— 6 min read
Supergood | Aderant Expert Sierra API

Programmatically access Aderant Expert Sierra’s practice management data—clients, matters, time entries, WIP/prebills, invoices, trust transactions—and operational workflows via a stable REST API. Supergood builds and operates production-grade, unofficial Aderant Expert Sierra integrations so your team can automate matter updates, time capture, billing controls, and eBilling submissions without heavy custom engineering.

Aderant Expert Sierra is cloud practice management software for law firms. It centralizes the systems firms rely on to run the business of law: matter and client records, time and expense capture, billing and invoicing (including LEDES/eBilling), collections, GL/AP/AR, conflicts, and workflow approvals. With an unofficial API, you can pull normalized data on clients and matters, push time entries from your apps, orchestrate prebills and invoice movements, and keep downstream systems in sync—without relying on brittle, portal-only processes.

If you’re a legal tech company integrating Aderant Expert Sierra, you can ingest client and matter master data, sync timekeeper activity (UTBMS task/activity codes), push or approve prebills, submit eBilling packets to vendor networks, and reconcile payments back to AR. You can also surface budgets and statuses to attorneys, trigger workflow actions (like matter opening or rate changes), and export evidence for finance and audit teams—reducing manual effort while improving visibility across your product.

What is Aderant Expert Sierra?

Aderant Expert Sierra is Aderant’s cloud-hosted version of the Expert platform, designed for mid- to large-sized law firms. It combines financial management, matter management, and operational workflow automation.

Core product families include:

  • Financial Management (GL/AP/AR, trust accounting, collections)
  • Time & Billing (timekeeping, WIP/prebills, invoice generation)
  • Matter & Client Management (intake, conflicts, matter metadata, rate schedules)
  • eBilling Compliance (LEDES formats, vendor portal submissions, validation)
  • Risk & Conflicts (search, screening, approvals)
  • Reporting & BI (operational dashboards, billing and realization analytics)

Common data entities:

  • Clients and matters (master data, practice area, responsible/billing timekeepers)
  • Timekeepers and users (roles, rates, departments)
  • Time and expense entries (UTBMS task/activity codes, narratives, billable flags)
  • Rate schedules (standard, client-specific, matter-specific)
  • WIP/prebills and invoices (statuses, totals, taxes, currencies)
  • Trust transactions and payments (deposits, transfers, disbursements)
  • eBilling submissions (LEDES payloads, vendor references, validation results)

The Aderant Expert Sierra Integration Challenge

Firms depend on Aderant Expert Sierra daily, but turning portal-centric workflows into automated pipelines is hard:

  • Licensing and entitlements: Access varies by module (time, billing, AR, trust, conflicts) and role; integrations must honor firm-specific permissions.
  • Enterprise authentication: SSO (e.g., Azure AD), MFA, and network controls complicate headless automation.
  • Portal-first and batch processes: Key actions (prebill generation, invoice posting) are often triggered in the UI or batch jobs; public APIs may be limited.
  • Customized data models: Firms extend matter and client records, rate plans, and workflows; schemas differ across tenants and upgrades.
  • eBilling fragmentation: LEDES flavors and vendor portals (e.g., Legal Tracker, TyMetrix 360) have idiosyncratic validations and statuses.
  • Timeliness and normalization: WIP, invoices, and payment states need consistent, up-to-date schemas for downstream systems.

How Supergood Creates Aderant Expert Sierra APIs

Supergood reverse-engineers authenticated browser flows and network interactions to deliver a resilient API endpoint layer for your Aderant Expert Sierra workflows.

  • Handles username/password, SSO/OAuth (e.g., Azure AD), and MFA (SMS, email, TOTP) securely
  • Maintains session continuity with automated refresh and change detection
  • Normalizes responses so you can integrate once and rely on consistent objects across modules and firm customizations
  • Aligns with customer entitlements and licensing constraints to ensure compliant access
  • Bridges portal-first actions (prebill/invoice posting, eBilling submission) into programmable endpoints

Use Cases

Matter and Client Sync

  • Pull master data for clients and matters into your product
  • Standardize responsible/billing timekeeper assignments and rate schedules
  • Keep custom matter fields aligned across systems

Timekeeping Automation

  • Push mobile or workflow-captured time entries with UTBMS codes
  • Validate narratives, billable flags, and rate application before WIP
  • Route exceptions and rejections to review queues

Billing and eBilling Orchestration

  • Trigger prebill creation and updates programmatically
  • List and track invoice status changes through posting and payment
  • Submit LEDES/eBilling packets to vendor portals with normalized results

Finance Reporting and Audit Trails

  • Export invoices and payments with metadata for reconciliation
  • Timestamp changes for auditability across approvals and postings
  • Prove coverage with consistent, machine-readable evidence

Available Endpoints

Authentication

POST /auth/sessions: Establish a session using credentials. Supergood manages MFA (SMS, email, TOTP) and SSO/OAuth when enabled. Returns a short-lived auth token maintained by the platform.

curl --request POST \
  --url https://api.supergood.ai/integrations/<integration_id>/auth/sessions \
  --header 'Authorization: Basic <Base64 encoded token>' \
  --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data '{
    "username": "[email protected]",
    "password": "<password>",
    "mfa": { "type": "totp", "code": "123456" },
    "ssoProvider": "azure_ad"
  }'

Example response

{
  "authToken": "eyJhbGciOi...",
  "expiresIn": 3600,
  "user": {
    "id": "u_tk_102",
    "name": "Billing Ops",
    "entitlements": ["clients", "matters", "time", "billing"]
  }
}

POST /auth/sessions/refresh: Refresh an existing token to keep sessions uninterrupted.

Clients

POST /clients: Create or upsert a client record to support intake, billing, and matter linkage.

curl --request POST \
  --url https://api.supergood.ai/integrations/<integration_id>/clients \
  --header 'Authorization: Bearer <authToken>' \
  --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data '{
    "clientNumber": "C-000432",
    "name": "Northstar Manufacturing, Inc.",
    "status": "active",
    "type": "organization",
    "taxId": "99-1234567",
    "primaryContact": {
      "name": "Erin Patel",
      "email": "[email protected]",
      "phone": "+1-312-555-1020"
    },
    "billingAddress": {
      "line1": "200 W Madison St",
      "city": "Chicago",
      "region": "IL",
      "postalCode": "60606",
      "country": "US"
    },
    "referenceId": "crm-2441"
  }'

Example response

{
  "clientId": "cl_7a21f2",
  "clientNumber": "C-000432",
  "createdAt": "2026-01-24T15:21:09Z",
  "referenceId": "crm-2441"
}

Matters

POST /matters: Create or upsert a matter aligned to client, practice area, and responsible/billing timekeepers.

curl --request POST \
  --url https://api.supergood.ai/integrations/<integration_id>/matters \
  --header 'Authorization: Bearer <authToken>' \
  --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data '{
    "clientNumber": "C-000432",
    "matterNumber": "M-2026-0198",
    "title": "Product Liability Defense - Northstar",
    "status": "open",
    "practiceArea": "Litigation",
    "openDate": "2026-01-20",
    "responsibleTimekeeperId": "tk_1003",
    "billingTimekeeperId": "tk_1011",
    "rateScheduleId": "rate_std_2026",
    "customFields": {
      "budgetAmount": 125000,
      "phase": "Pleadings"
    },
    "referenceId": "case-ks-7719"
  }'

Example response

{
  "matterId": "mt_4c88b9",
  "matterNumber": "M-2026-0198",
  "clientId": "cl_7a21f2",
  "createdAt": "2026-01-24T15:28:51Z",
  "referenceId": "case-ks-7719"
}

Time Entries

POST /time-entries: Record billable or non-billable time with UTBMS task/activity codes and rate application.

curl --request POST \
  --url https://api.supergood.ai/integrations/<integration_id>/time-entries \
  --header 'Authorization: Bearer <authToken>' \
  --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data '{
    "timekeeperId": "tk_1003",
    "matterNumber": "M-2026-0198",
    "workDate": "2026-01-22",
    "hours": 2.8,
    "taskCode": "L200",
    "activityCode": "A102",
    "narrative": "Draft and revise motion to dismiss; confer with co-counsel.",
    "billable": true,
    "rateApplied": 425.00,
    "currency": "USD",
    "billingStatus": "wip",
    "referenceId": "mobile-entry-88211"
  }'

Example response

{
  "timeEntryId": "te_93ab53",
  "status": "accepted",
  "createdAt": "2026-01-24T15:33:12Z",
  "matterId": "mt_4c88b9",
  "referenceId": "mobile-entry-88211"
}

Invoices (eBilling Submission)

POST /invoices/{invoiceId}/submit-ebilling: Submit an approved invoice to an eBilling vendor with LEDES payload and attachments.

curl --request POST \
  --url https://api.supergood.ai/integrations/<integration_id>/invoices/inv_551b00/submit-ebilling \
  --header 'Authorization: Bearer <authToken>' \
  --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data '{
    "vendor": "legal_tracker",
    "ledesFormat": "LEDES1998B",
    "attachments": [
      { "type": "pdf", "attachmentId": "att_0021" },
      { "type": "excel", "attachmentId": "att_0022" }
    ],
    "referenceId": "ebill-legaltracker-551b00"
  }'

Example response

{
  "submissionId": "subm_eb_7721",
  "invoiceId": "inv_551b00",
  "status": "accepted",
  "vendorReference": "LT-INV-445812",
  "submittedAt": "2026-01-24T15:40:47Z",
  "referenceId": "ebill-legaltracker-551b00"
}

Get full API Specs →

Technical Specifications

  • Authentication: Username/password with MFA (SMS, email, TOTP) and SSO/OAuth where enabled (e.g., Azure AD); supports service accounts or customer-managed credentials
  • Response format: JSON with consistent resource schemas and pagination
  • Rate limits: Tuned for enterprise throughput while honoring Aderant licensing and usage controls
  • Session management: Automatic reauth and cookie/session rotation with health checks
  • Data freshness: Near real-time retrieval of WIP, invoice status, and submitted eBilling payloads
  • Security: Encrypted transport, scoped tokens, and audit logging; respects Aderant Expert Sierra entitlements and role-based access
  • Webhooks: Optional asynchronous delivery for invoice status changes and time entry acceptance

Performance Characteristics

  • Latency: Sub-second responses for list/detail queries under normal load
  • Throughput: Designed for high-volume time capture and billing pipelines
  • Reliability: Retry logic, backoff, and idempotency keys minimize duplicate actions
  • Adaptation: Continuous monitoring for UI/API changes with rapid adapter updates

Getting Started

  1. Schedule Integration Assessment

Book a 30-minute session to confirm your module mix, licensing, and authentication model.

  1. Supergood Builds and Validates Your API

We deliver a hardened Aderant Expert Sierra adapter tailored to your workflows and entitlements.

  1. Deploy with Monitoring

Go live with continuous monitoring and automatic adjustments as Aderant evolves.

Schedule Integration Call →

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Which Aderant Expert Sierra modules can this integration cover?

Supergood supports workflows across matter/client master data, time & expense capture, WIP/prebills, invoicing, eBilling submission, and payments/trust—subject to your licensing and entitlements. We scope coverage during integration assessment.

Q: How are SSO and MFA handled for automation?

We support username/password + MFA (SMS, email, TOTP) and can operate behind SSO/OAuth (e.g., Azure AD) when enabled. Sessions are refreshed automatically with secure challenge handling.

Q: Can you submit LEDES/eBilling invoices?

Yes. We generate LEDES payloads, attach supporting documents, and submit to vendor portals (e.g., Legal Tracker, TyMetrix 360) where your firm has access. We return normalized submission statuses and vendor references.

Q: How do you map timekeepers and rates across clients and matters?

We normalize timekeeper identifiers and associate the correct rate schedule (standard, client-specific, matter-specific) per entry, validating billable flags and UTBMS codes to prevent downstream exceptions.

Q: Do you support on-prem Aderant Expert as well as Sierra?

We primarily target Sierra-hosted environments but can scope on-prem Expert adapters, including operating inside customer networks where required.

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