Java Reference
In-Depth Information
The Client Matter Table illustrated in
Table 2-6
contains the columns billing_cid and
client_cid, which are foreign keys pointing to entries in the contacts table, and are
labeled with a _cid suffix to denote contact_id in order to avoid confusion with
client_id.
Table 2-6: Client Matter Table
id
client_i
d
client_re
f
nam
e
billing_rat
e
manager_i
d
billing_ci
d
client_ci
d
1000
1
1201
ref -3711
Jones
v
Biddle
2
1004
1007
2001
1000
2
1296
b7997
Jones
v
Biddle
1
1001
1007
2093
The Billing Rates Table shown in
Table 2-7
includes a type code that simply points to
a Lookup Table of billing types, including the following:
Time and Materials
Flat Fee
Contingency
Fee Sharing
Table 2-7: Billing Rates Table
id
type_code
discount_type
discount
tax_rate_fees
tax_rate_exp
terms
1
1
1
15
5
5
1
2
1
1
12.5
5
5
3
Discount types is also a reference to a Lookup Table containing the entries FLAT and
PERCENT. Based on the selected discount type, the discount contains either a flat
discount amount or a percentage discount rate. The terms column contains another
lookup code pointing to a table of payment terms such as 10/30, which means that
the billing firm accepts a 10 percent discount if the invoice is paid in full within 30
days.
Generating an Invoice
Generating an invoice involves retrieving a list of all open matters and summarizing
the billable items outstanding against each open matter. For the purposes of this
example, a Dedicated Billings Table will be created. This table has a one -to-one
relationship with the Client Matter Table, as shown in
Figure 2-4
.
