Political Asylum Lawyers – Accounting & Finance Manager (Hands‑on)

Political Asylum Lawyers is a Houston‑based immigration law firm focused on asylum cases. We help immigrants all over the United States secure their futures in the United States through asylum, combining exceptional standards with deep respect for the human reality behind every case.

Our work changes lives. The standards we maintain, the discipline behind our work, and the way we show up every day can determine whether someone is able to stay safe and build a stable future in the United States. That is why we operate with integrity, urgency, and excellence, and why we expect every team member to take full ownership of their role.

Everything we do is guided by our core values : integrity, excellence, accountability, teamwork and passion.

Working Here Means

- High‑stakes responsibility: our work is of great consequence for our clients
- Deeply meaningful outcomes: our work changes lives for the better
- Emotionally demanding moments: resilience and maturity are essential
- High standards and constant growth: excellence and continuous improvement are expected
- Mission‑driven teamwork: we’re passionate about helping immigrants secure their future in the United States through asylum, and we know that meeting our high standards requires each of us to take ownership, communicate proactively, and support one another

If you want a career where your skills create tangible change in the world, this is it.

In this role, you'll be an integral part of our team's mission of helping immigrants secure their future in the United States through asylum. We believe that those fleeing persecution deserve expert guidance and unwavering support as they seek safety and a new beginning in the United States.

Financial Operations Management

- Perform and manage day‑to‑day financial operations, working with existing staff and service providers and documenting procedures so the work is completed accurately and on time.
- Follow financial issues through to resolution: identify who is responsible for each next step and its deadline, follow up, raise problems with recommended solutions, and confirm that the agreed actions was completed correctly.
- Ensure accurate execution of accounting, billing, A/R, A/P, payroll, trust accounting, collections, tax coordination, and general ledger maintenance.
- Maintain clean and current financial records in the accounting system.
- Ensure the legal team is supported with accurate financial information related to client matters, billing, retainers, and collections.
- Monitor daily cash balances, bank accounts, credit card activity, merchant activity, and other key financial accounts.
- Ensure bills, vendor payments, check requests, and reimbursements are processed accurately and on time.

Financial Reporting, Budgeting, and Forecasting

- Prepare, review, and analyze monthly financial statements and key financial reports on time.
- Validate supporting records, calculations, and assumptions; investigate material inconsistencies and disclose unresolved limitations.
- Ensure monthly financial reports are completed accurately and on time.
- Prepare annual and periodic budgets and forecasts as required throughout the year. Provide budget variance reports and explain the results to the Owner/CFO in clear business language,



including conclusions, recommendations, and decisions needed.
- Support the creation, maintenance, and monitoring of the annual budget.
- Maintain a forward‑looking cash flow forecast to help leadership anticipate shortfalls, plan distributions, and manage working capital.
- Track year‑over‑year revenue growth, gross profit, operating profit, and other key financial trends.
- Provide analysis that supports strategic planning, operational planning, and financial decision‑making.

Billing, Collections, and Accounts Receivable

- Own and continuously improve the firm’s billing and collections process.
- Supervise timely preparation and delivery of client invoices.
- Monitor payment plans and ensure clients comply with payment terms.
- Track, measure, and report accounts receivable aging.
- Ensure collection protocols are followed consistently and professionally.
- Work with billing staff and leadership to prevent A/R from accruing unnecessarily.
- Address client billing questions and payment concerns professionally while protecting the firm’s financial interests.
- Own the operational handling of chargebacks, refund requests, billing disputes, and merchant service issues through documented resolution.
- Review billing records, payment history and related correspondence to understand and resolve chargebacks, refund requests and billing disputes. Coordinate follow‑up, obtain required approvals, and confirm that any approved refunds, credits or other adjustments are correctly recorded in the relevant systems and account balances.
- Recommend process improvements to increase collection rate and reduce financial leakage.

Trust Accounting and Compliance

- Ensure trust/IOLTA account activity is properly monitored, reconciled, and documented.
- Own or review three‑way trust reconciliations.
- Identify and resolve trust accounting discrepancies with urgency.
- Ensure compliance with applicable legal, ethical, and accounting requirements.
- Work with the Owner/CFO and CPA to correct accounting or reporting issues.
- Maintain strong internal controls to protect the integrity of firm financials.

Internal Controls and Risk Management

- Design, recommend, and enforce financial controls that protect the firm.
- Identify financial risks, reporting gaps, compliance issues, cash flow risks, billing breakdowns, and process weaknesses.
- Recommend practical corrective actions to leadership and work within approved policies and authority limits.
- Support audits, tax preparation, financial reviews, and outside accounting reviews.
- Ensure balance sheet reconciliations, payroll liability reconciliations, and bank reconciliations are completed accurately.
- Monitor payroll taxes, tax liabilities, vendor obligations, debt obligations, and compliance deadlines.

Finance Team and Vendor Oversight

- Oversee existing staff and providers formally assigned to the role, including the bookkeeper, billing specialist,



payroll provider, outsourced finance vendors, and other accounting support.
- Provide direction, accountability, and feedback to finance/accounting staff.
- Progressively delegate recurring accounting and billing work while retaining controls, review, and accountability for results, as appropriate.
- Participate in onboarding, training, and performance reviews for other assigned finance‑related positions.
- Ensure finance team members understand expectations, deadlines, reporting requirements, and quality standards.
- Hold vendors accountable for timely and accurate work.
- Serve as the internal subject matter expert for accounting software, billing systems, chart of accounts, reporting processes, and financial workflows.
- Identify practical improvements in Quick Books, Stripe, Google Sheets, Asana, and related workflows.
- Define financial requirements and implement, test, and document changes with technical support as needed.
- Maintain controls, data quality, security, and approval boundaries, and own completion and accuracy even when technical colleagues build the solution.

Financial Analysis and Business Support

- Analyze profitability by service, SKU, practice area, attorney, labor cost, marketing channel, and client/matter type when data is available.
- Support pricing reviews to ensure services produce adequate gross profit.
- Evaluate underperforming investments, expense categories, vendors, and initiatives.
- Track production labor return, utilization, realization, collection rate, and cost of acquisition where applicable.
- Help leadership understand total owner benefit, owner distributions, working capital needs, and firm financial health.
- Support centralized KPI reporting and scorecard development.

Requirements

- Bachelor’s degree in Accounting or Finance
- Minimum of 5 years of progressive accounting or finance experience, preferably in a law firm, professional services firm, or other service‑based business.
- Strong understanding of general accounting, financial reporting, budgeting, forecasting, A/R, A/P, payroll, and month‑end close.
- Experience managing or reviewing trust/IOLTA accounting and reconciliations.
- Experience with billing systems, client payment plans, collections, and accounts receivable management.
- Strong proficiency with accounting software, legal billing systems, Microsoft Excel, and financial reporting tools.
- Practical experience using AI tools and automation to improve accounting or finance workflows, with a working understanding of APIs, scripts, and how data moves between systems.
- Ability to identify improvement opportunities, define clear financial requirements, collaborate with technical colleagues on implementation, and validate the accuracy and reliability of results. Advanced coding skills are not required.
- Ability to prepare accurate financial reports and explain them clearly to non‑financial leaders.
- Demonstrated ability to identify financial risks, implement controls, and resolve discrepancies.
- Strong organizational, analytical, communication, and problem‑solving skills.
- High integrity, confidentiality, discretion, and professional judgment.
- Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast‑paced law firm environment.

Preferred Qualifications

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📌 Hands-On Finance & Accounting Manager — Remote (Rosario)
🏢 Universidad de San Andres
📍 Rosario