diff --git a/hledger-lib/Hledger/Data/Balancing.hs b/hledger-lib/Hledger/Data/Balancing.hs
index 5f3c9767c..970466085 100644
--- a/hledger-lib/Hledger/Data/Balancing.hs
+++ b/hledger-lib/Hledger/Data/Balancing.hs
@@ -20,7 +20,6 @@ module Hledger.Data.Balancing
 , balanceTransactionHelper
   -- * journal balancing
 , journalBalanceTransactions
-, journalCheckBalanceAssertions
   -- * tests
 , tests_Balancing
 )
@@ -376,11 +375,6 @@ costInferrerFor t pt = maybe id infercost inferFromAndTo
         saturatedAdd a b = if maxBound - a < b then maxBound else a + b
 
 
--- | Check any balance assertions in the journal and return an error message
--- if any of them fail (or if the transaction balancing they require fails).
-journalCheckBalanceAssertions :: Journal -> Maybe String
-journalCheckBalanceAssertions = either Just (const Nothing) . journalBalanceTransactions defbalancingopts
-
 -- "Transaction balancing", including: inferring missing amounts,
 -- applying balance assignments, checking transaction balancedness,
 -- checking balance assertions, respecting posting dates. These things
diff --git a/hledger-lib/Hledger/Data/JournalChecks.hs b/hledger-lib/Hledger/Data/JournalChecks.hs
index 9aa556792..21575c112 100644
--- a/hledger-lib/Hledger/Data/JournalChecks.hs
+++ b/hledger-lib/Hledger/Data/JournalChecks.hs
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ others can be called only via the check command.
 
 module Hledger.Data.JournalChecks (
   journalCheckAccounts,
+  journalCheckBalanceAssertions,
   journalCheckCommodities,
   journalCheckPayees,
   journalCheckPairedConversionPostings,
@@ -39,6 +40,8 @@ import Data.Time (Day, diffDays)
 import Hledger.Utils
 import Data.Ord
 import Hledger.Data.Dates (showDate)
+import Hledger.Data.Balancing (journalBalanceTransactions, defbalancingopts)
+
 
 -- | Check that all the journal's postings are to accounts  with
 -- account directives, returning an error message otherwise.
@@ -60,6 +63,12 @@ journalCheckAccounts j = mapM_ checkacct (journalPostings j)
         where
           (f,l,_mcols,ex) = makePostingAccountErrorExcerpt p
 
+-- | Check all balance assertions in the journal and return an error message if any of them fail.
+-- (Technically, this also tries to balance the journal and can return balancing failure errors;
+-- ensure the journal is already balanced (with journalBalanceTransactions) to avoid this.)
+journalCheckBalanceAssertions :: Journal -> Either String ()
+journalCheckBalanceAssertions = fmap (const ()) . journalBalanceTransactions defbalancingopts
+
 -- | Check that all the commodities used in this journal's postings have been declared
 -- by commodity directives, returning an error message otherwise.
 journalCheckCommodities :: Journal -> Either String ()
diff --git a/hledger-ui/Hledger/UI/ErrorScreen.hs b/hledger-ui/Hledger/UI/ErrorScreen.hs
index ee51b213f..a4a24b254 100644
--- a/hledger-ui/Hledger/UI/ErrorScreen.hs
+++ b/hledger-ui/Hledger/UI/ErrorScreen.hs
@@ -188,8 +188,8 @@ uiCheckBalanceAssertions _d ui@UIState{ajournal=j}
   | ui^.ignore_assertions = ui
   | otherwise =
     case journalCheckBalanceAssertions j of
-      Nothing  -> ui
-      Just err ->
+      Right () -> ui
+      Left err ->
         case ui of
           UIState{aScreen=ES sst} -> ui{aScreen=ES sst{_essError=err}}
           _                        -> pushScreen (esNew err) ui