Case study
How Kimberlin Company accelerated 401(k) audits with CoCounsel Audit
With CoCounsel Audit, Kimberlin Company reduced plan document reviews from up to 90 minutes to 15 minutes while helping auditors validate findings faster and with greater confidence
Company overview
Arizona-based accounting firm Kimberlin Company, PLLC, specializes in employee benefit plan audits. The firm conducts audits of medium-to-large 401(k) plans, reviewing I-9s, termination forms, investment allocations, and contributions at both the plan and participant levels. Dedicated to professionalism, responsiveness, and quality, the firm manages a growing volume of clients on a rigorous weekly engagement schedule.
Executive summary
The firm faced mounting efficiency and confidence challenges when manually reviewing complex 401(k) plan documents spanning more than 150 pages across multiple amendments. By implementing Thomson Reuters CoCounsel Audit, the firm significantly reduced the time required to validate complex plan document questions. The result is a faster, more confident review process that helps auditors locate relevant provisions, verify interpretations, and reduce reliance on senior staff for routine checks.
15 min
Plan document error checks once took up to 90 minutes
3-4
Days per week of active use validating plan documents, SOC 1 reports, and audit questions
80%
Time savings from faster responses and source-linked verification
The challenge: Complex plan documents demand precision under pressure
Auditing employee benefit plans requires meticulous analysis of dense, highly regulated documents. For Kimberlin Company's audit team, each engagement involves navigating plan documents that can run 150 pages or more, tracking multiple amendments across different effective dates, and parsing complex eligibility rules spanning definitions of compensation, safe harbor provisions, and SECURE 2.0 Act compliance requirements.
Before adopting CoCounsel, the team relied on manual review processes that were time-intensive and mentally taxing. Auditors spent significant time scrolling through individual pages to locate specific provisions, hand-keying information from plan documents into workpapers, and cross-referencing multiple amendments to determine which terms applied during a given audit period. A single plan document review could consume anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half — time that compounded across the firm's full client roster.
The complexity of the work also created persistent challenges around confidence and verification. Auditors frequently needed to consult senior leadership to validate their interpretations of plan terms, creating bottlenecks that slowed the entire team. As Lexie Kern, an Auditor at Kimberlin Company, explained,
“I used to ask him (my director) 1000 questions a day. Now I ask CoCounsel first and then if I still don't understand it, then I ask him. So it's definitely freed up a lot of his time and he's definitely encouraged other team members to make sure they're using their resources accordingly.”
Lexie Kern
Auditor, Kimberlin Company
The solution: AI-powered plan document analysis with CoCounsel Audit
Kimberlin Company adopted CoCounsel Audit, Thomson Reuters AI-powered research assistant integrated with Checkpoint, to transform how the team approaches plan document analysis. Since implementation, CoCounsel has become an essential part of the firm's regular audit workflow, used three to four days per week.
CoCounsel's document analysis capabilities allow auditors to upload plan documents and query them directly, replacing the manual page-by-page review process. When updating participant eligibility, auditors prompt CoCounsel to confirm plan provisions, identify applicable amendments, and break down complex definitions of compensation — work that previously required extensive manual effort. The tool provides direct source references linking back to specific pages and sections, enabling quick verification. Kern noted the value of this transparency. "I can literally see the breakdown where it got the information, not only from my document, but as well as any online resources or outside sources. I like that it shows me how many sources it referenced and then I can look at each of those to confirm that."
While professional judgment remains critical, CoCounsel accelerates the verification process by directing auditors to the most relevant sections faster allowing the team to spend less time searching and more time validating their work.
The firm also leverages CoCounsel to analyze SOC 1 reports as part of the CX 4.4 audit program. Rather than manually parsing lengthy reports to identify relevant controls, auditors prompt CoCounsel to map specific controls to their testing focus areas, then copy structured results directly into workpapers. CoCounsel has also proven valuable for SECURE 2.0 Act compliance work, helping auditors quickly identify whether clients have adopted required amendments and determine applicable effective dates.
Beyond audit work, CoCounsel helps accelerate knowledge transfer across the team. Trainees can use the tool to better understand complex regulatory concepts and find answers to routine questions independently. By providing clear explanations backed by source material, CoCounsel builds confidence while reducing the time senior staff spend fielding day-to-day questions. As Lexie noted, "I think it helps so much, especially with trainees."
The outcomes: Faster delivery, reduced risk, and growing capacity
By implementing CoCounsel Audit, Kimberlin Company has streamlined how auditors review plan documents, validate eligibility requirements, and answer complex compliance questions. Kern estimates that an error-checking task that previously took 60 to 90 minutes can now be completed in approximately 15 minutes, largely because CoCounsel quickly identifies relevant source material and directs her to the specific sections she needs to review.
CoCounsel's impact extends beyond efficiency. The tool has helped strengthen audit quality by making it easier to validate plan provisions, verify interpretations, and document conclusions with confidence. Kern noted that CoCounsel's source-linked responses provide "clarity and understanding" and deliver "clear and concise data points" that auditors can quickly reference and validate. As a result, the team spends less time questioning whether an interpretation is correct and more time focusing on professional judgment and client service.
“It (CoCounsel) provides clarity and understanding as well as clear and concise data points in which you can reference. It's consistent in its answers. It definitely takes a lot of the questioning or self-doubt out of the process on a daily basis, making it easier for me to get my work done.”
Lexie Kern
Auditor, Kimberlin Company
That same ability to deliver clear, accessible explanations has made CoCounsel a valuable training and onboarding resource. Lexie uses the tool to create vocabulary lists, develop onboarding materials, and explain technical concepts to new hires.
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