Create Time Entry (lawmatics_create-time-entry)
Create a time entry in Lawmatics and associate it with a matter or contact. Requires userId and createdById (Lawmatics user IDs — see get-current-user or list-users). Duration is in hours (e.g. 1.5 = 1 hour 30 minutes); the hourly rate is in integer cents (e.g. 12000 = $120.00/hr). Only completed entries (with completedAt set) can be added to invoices. Returns the created entry including a `relationships` envelope of {id,type} pointers to related records (the matter or contact the time is billed to, the staff and creating users, the billing activity type, and the invoice). WARNING: contact-targeted creates can return a server error AFTER the entry was saved — on an upstream error, list time entries sorted by created_at descending to check for the new entry before retrying, or you may create a duplicate.
Tool Input
descriptionstringrequired— Description of the work performed
durationnumberrequired— Duration in hours as a float (e.g. 1.5 = 1 hour 30 minutes), NOT minutes
billableboolean— Whether the time is billable
rateCentsinteger— Hourly rate in integer cents (e.g. 12000 = $120.00/hr), NOT dollars
rateFlatFeeboolean— Whether this is a flat-fee entry (completedAt is set automatically for flat-fee entries if not given)
showFlatFeeDurationboolean— Whether to show the client the duration for a flat-fee entry
startedAtstring(date-time)— When the time entry started, as an ISO 8601 timestamp (e.g. "2026-06-05T10:00:00-07:00"). Unix epoch values are NOT accepted.(pattern: ^(?:(?:\d\d[2468][048]|\d\d[13579][26]|\d\d0[48]|[02468][048]00|[13579][26]00)-02-29|\d{4}-(?:(?:0[13578]|1[02])-(?:0[1-9]|[12]\d|3[01])|(?:0[469]|11)-(?:0[1-9]|[12]\d|30)|(?:02)-(?:0[1-9]|1\d|2[0-8])))T(?:(?:[01]\d|2[0-3]):[0-5]\d(?::[0-5]\d(?:\.\d+)?)?(?:Z||([+-](?:[01]\d|2[0-3]):[0-5]\d)))$)
completedAtstring(date-time)— When the time entry completed, as an ISO 8601 timestamp (e.g. "2026-06-05T10:30:00-07:00"). Unix epoch values are NOT accepted. Only completed entries can be added to invoices.(pattern: ^(?:(?:\d\d[2468][048]|\d\d[13579][26]|\d\d0[48]|[02468][048]00|[13579][26]00)-02-29|\d{4}-(?:(?:0[13578]|1[02])-(?:0[1-9]|[12]\d|3[01])|(?:0[469]|11)-(?:0[1-9]|[12]\d|30)|(?:02)-(?:0[1-9]|1\d|2[0-8])))T(?:(?:[01]\d|2[0-3]):[0-5]\d(?::[0-5]\d(?:\.\d+)?)?(?:Z||([+-](?:[01]\d|2[0-3]):[0-5]\d)))$)
activityTypeIdstring— ID of the billing activity type
userIdstringrequired— ID of the user who performed the time entry (the API requires this)
createdByIdstringrequired— ID of the user who created the time entry (the API requires this)
invoiceIdstring— ID of the invoice to attach this entry to
matterIdstring— ID of the matter to associate this time entry with
contactIdstring— ID of the contact to associate this time entry with
Tool Output
idstringrequired— Unique ID of the created time entry
descriptionstringnullrequired— Description of the work performed; null if unset
durationnumberrequired— Duration in hours as a float (e.g. 1.5 = 1 hour 30 minutes), NOT minutes
durationRoundednumbernullrequired— Duration rounded to the firm's billing increment, in hours; null if not reported
billablebooleannullrequired— Whether the time is billable; null if not reported
rateFlatFeebooleannullrequired— Whether this is a flat-fee entry; null if not reported
rateCentsintegernullrequired— Hourly rate in integer cents (e.g. 12000 = $120.00/hr); null if not reported
rateCurrencystringnullrequired— ISO currency code of the rate (e.g. "USD"); null if not reported
runningSincestringnullrequired— When the entry's live timer started, as an ISO 8601 timestamp; null when no timer is running
startedAtstringnullrequired— When the time entry started, as an ISO 8601 timestamp; null if unset
completedAtstringnullrequired— When the time entry completed, as an ISO 8601 timestamp; null while incomplete (only completed entries can be added to invoices)
createdAtstringnullrequired— When the time entry record was created, as an ISO 8601 timestamp; null if unknown
updatedAtstringnullrequired— When the time entry record was last updated, as an ISO 8601 timestamp; null if unknown
relationshipsobjectrequired— JSON:API relationship pointers to related records as {id,type} stubs. Not materialized — follow a pointer by calling that resource's own get/find tool (e.g. type 'user' -> get-user, type 'prospect' -> get-matter, type 'contact' -> get-contact, type 'invoice' -> get-invoice).
activityTypeobjectnullrequired— Billing activity type pointer; null when unset
idstringrequired— ID of the referenced Lawmatics record
typestringrequired— JSON:API record class of the reference (e.g. "user", "contact", "prospect", "firm"); resolve it by calling that resource's own get/find tool — this pointer is not materialized
contactableobjectnullrequired— Pointer to the record the time is billed to; type is "prospect" for a matter or "contact" for a contact; null when unassociated
idstringrequired— ID of the referenced Lawmatics record
typestringrequired— JSON:API record class of the reference (e.g. "user", "contact", "prospect", "firm"); resolve it by calling that resource's own get/find tool — this pointer is not materialized
createdByobjectnullrequired— Pointer to the user who created the record; null when unattributed
idstringrequired— ID of the referenced Lawmatics record
typestringrequired— JSON:API record class of the reference (e.g. "user", "contact", "prospect", "firm"); resolve it by calling that resource's own get/find tool — this pointer is not materialized
invoiceobjectnullrequired— Pointer to the invoice this entry is attached to; null when not invoiced
idstringrequired— ID of the referenced Lawmatics record
typestringrequired— JSON:API record class of the reference (e.g. "user", "contact", "prospect", "firm"); resolve it by calling that resource's own get/find tool — this pointer is not materialized
staffobjectnullrequired— Pointer to the user who performed the time entry; null when unattributed
idstringrequired— ID of the referenced Lawmatics record
typestringrequired— JSON:API record class of the reference (e.g. "user", "contact", "prospect", "firm"); resolve it by calling that resource's own get/find tool — this pointer is not materialized
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