How to export time entries from Outlook to your practice management system
You can export time entries captured from your emails directly to your practice management system using CSV format, which most platforms accept natively. The workflow starts with automatic email capture through Tallymail, which identifies billable activity in your inbox and builds a structured record you can then push downstream into whatever system you use to manage matters and billing.
This matters because manual time entry remains one of the biggest friction points in legal practice. Solicitors, barristers, and attorneys spend significant time each week reconstructing their day from memory or email threads, often missing billable moments entirely. Paralegals and legal operations teams then face the job of chasing down missing timesheets. By capturing time at the point of work, right there in Outlook, you eliminate that gap and get accurate records into your practice management system without the double-entry problem.
Why Outlook is where your time actually lives
Most legal professionals spend their working day in email. Client queries arrive there. Advice gets drafted there. Negotiations happen there. Yet time tracking tools typically sit in a separate interface, disconnected from where the work actually occurs. This creates the classic problem: you finish an email exchange with a client, close Outlook, and by the time you open your time tracking tool, the context is gone. You either guess at the duration or skip it entirely.
Outlook is where the evidence of your work exists. The email thread shows when you started, what you dealt with, and often how long it took. Capturing time from that point means you are working with real data, not memory. When you then export those entries to your practice management system, you are moving a complete record that includes the matter code, the work description, and the duration, all derived from the actual work product.
This is especially valuable for solicitors managing multiple matters simultaneously, barristers juggling cases between chambers, and in-house counsel tracking time across different projects. Attorneys in smaller firms and sole practitioners benefit equally because they cannot afford to lose billable time to administrative overhead.
How automatic capture builds exportable records
When an Outlook add-in designed for time capture runs in the background, it watches for emails that represent billable work. You classify them, marking an email as relating to a specific matter, case, or client, and the system records the timestamp, duration, and classification. Over time, this builds a complete chronology of your work on that matter.
The captured entries are structured rather than raw. Each entry includes the matter reference, the nature of the work, the date and time, and a narrative derived from the email itself. This structure is critical for export because your practice management system needs to ingest data in a consistent format.
When you are ready to move those entries to your practice management system, you export as CSV. The CSV file contains columns for matter code, timekeeper name, duration, work description, date, and any other fields your practice management system requires. You then import that file directly into your billing module. Most practice management systems have an import function designed exactly for this workflow.
The benefit is speed and accuracy. You are not manually typing time entries or transcribing matter codes and getting them wrong. You are moving a complete, verified record from where the work happened into the system where it gets billed.
Preparing your practice management system for import
Before you export your first batch of time entries, you need to understand what your practice management system actually accepts. Most modern platforms support CSV import for time entries, but the column headers and required fields vary between systems.
Log into your practice management system and look for the time entry import function. It is usually in the billing or timekeeping section. There will be documentation or a template showing which columns are required and which are optional. Common required fields include matter code, timekeeper ID, date, duration, and description. Some systems also want task codes covering categories such as research, drafting, correspondence, or court attendance, as well as billing rates.
Note these requirements before you export. If your practice management system requires a specific matter code format, such as a six-digit code rather than a name, you will need to ensure your classifications match that format, or you will need to do a quick find-and-replace in the CSV file before importing.
Also check whether your practice management system allows bulk import or if there are limits on file size. If you are exporting a substantial period of captured time, you might be working with a file containing a large number of entries, so it is worth confirming the system can handle that volume before you begin.
Exporting your time entries and formatting for import
Once you have captured your time entries and classified them against the correct matters and clients, you are ready to export. A well-designed time capture tool will generate a CSV file containing all your captured entries for the date range you specify.
Filtering before you export is good practice. Narrow the export by matter, date range, timekeeper, or work type so you are only moving the entries you intend to import in that batch. Exporting only what you need reduces the risk of duplicates and makes the review step faster.
The CSV file will open in Excel or any spreadsheet application. This is your opportunity to review the data before it enters your practice management system. Check that matter codes are correct, that durations look reasonable, and that descriptions are clear. If you spot errors, fix them in the spreadsheet. You can also add or modify any columns that your practice management system requires but your export tool does not populate automatically.
Some practice management systems have specific requirements about date format, such as DD/MM/YYYY versus MM/DD/YYYY, or duration format, such as decimal hours versus hours and minutes. Adjust your CSV accordingly before saving the file.
Importing into your practice management system
Most practice management systems have an import wizard or upload function. Navigate to it, usually under Billing, Time Entries, or Timekeeping. Select your CSV file and upload it. The system will typically show you a preview of the data it is about to import, allowing you to confirm that the columns have been mapped correctly.
Check that matter codes are being recognised, that durations are being read as numbers rather than text, and that dates are being parsed correctly. If something looks wrong, go back and adjust your CSV before proceeding.
Once you confirm, the import runs. After it completes, spot-check a few entries in your practice management system to confirm they have been imported correctly. Look at a matter you know well and verify that the entries, durations, and descriptions match what you exported.
If you notice errors after import, most practice management systems allow you to delete imported entries and re-import. This is why it is worth doing a small test import first: export a short period of entries, import them, and verify they are correct before you commit to importing a larger dataset.
Keeping your workflow continuous
Once you have completed your first import, you can establish a regular rhythm. Many practices export and import time entries weekly or bi-weekly, just before billing runs. Others do it monthly. The frequency depends on your billing cycle and how current you need your practice management system to be.
For barristers and solicitors in chambers, this workflow is particularly clean because each practitioner can export their own entries and import them into the shared practice management system. Paralegals and legal operations staff can then verify and finalise billing from there.
In-house counsel and small firm practitioners benefit from the simplicity: capture happens automatically, export takes a matter of moments, import follows quickly, and your time is in your system ready to be billed or analysed. Building this into a regular calendar reminder means it becomes a habit rather than a task you remember only when billing is overdue.
Common concerns about data integrity
The main worry practices have about exporting time data is whether they will lose information or create duplicates. With CSV export and import, neither is likely if you follow the process carefully.
Data loss is not a concern because you are exporting a complete record. The CSV file contains everything that was captured. Once imported into your practice management system, that data is stored there, and your capture tool retains its own copy as well.
Duplicates can happen if you import the same CSV file twice. This is why it is important to keep track of which exports you have already imported. A simple naming convention, such as Export_Week_of_15Jan.csv, helps. Once you have imported a file, move it to an archive folder or mark it as imported so you do not accidentally process it again.
If you do accidentally import duplicates, most practice management systems let you identify and delete them. It is not ideal, but it is easily fixable and far less damaging than missing billable time altogether.
About Tallymail
Tallymail is an Outlook add-in that automatically captures billable time from your emails and builds court-ready case timelines. It is designed for solicitors, barristers, and accountants in the UK and US, and integrates with practice management systems through CSV export, allowing you to move your captured time entries directly into your chosen platform.