Bail Bond
What Is a Bond for Bail?
A criminal defendant signs a bail bond, promising to show up for court or to pay a certain amount of money. A bail bondsman pays the defendant a fee in exchange for guaranteeing the payment on the bail bond, which is cosigned by the bondsman.
A specific type of bail bond is a surety bond.
Only in the United States and the Philippines is there a system for commercial bail bonds. In some other nations, a defendant's release from custody until their trial date is exchanged for a set of limitations and conditions.
KEY LESSONS
Instead of paying the full amount of the bail ordered by the court, a defendant posts a bail bond cosigned by a bail bondsman.
The bail bond guarantees that the defendant will show up for court.
Bail amounts are often established by judges with a great deal of discretion.
Bail bondsmen often demand a 10% up-front payment for their services, with the possibility of further costs. Some states have capped the amount charged at 8%.
Many people believe that the bail system unfairly penalizes low-income defendants and contributes to the disproportionate imprisonment of young African-American men.
How Bail Bonds Operate
A judge will normally hold a bail hearing for a person who has been charged with a crime. The judge has the last say over the bail amount. If the defendant is accused of a serious offense or looks to be a flight risk, the court may completely refuse bail or set it at a very high amount.
Bail amounts are often established with great discretion by judges, and standard amounts vary by jurisdiction. Bail might be set at $500 for a person facing a nonviolent misdemeanor offense. Bail amounts associated with felonies are often substantial, averaging $20,000 or more.
Only in the United States and the Philippines is there a system for commercial bail bonds.
After the bail amount is decided, the defendant has three options: either stay in jail until the charges are proven at trial, get a bail bond, or pay the bail sum in full until the case is through. As a last resort, some nations' courts accept ownership of a home or other valuable collateral in place of cash.
Bail bondsmen, sometimes known as bail bond brokers, present criminal courts with written agreements pledging to pay the bail in full if the defendants whose presence they guarantee do not show up for their court dates.
Bail bondsmen often demand a 10% up-front payment for their services, with the possibility of further costs. Some states have capped the amount charged at 8%.
Additionally, the agent could ask the defendant to provide a declaration of the creditworthiness or provide stocks or real estate as collateral. The majority of valuable items, including vehicles, jewels, homes, and stocks and bonds, are often accepted by bail bondsmen.
The defendant is granted freedom pending trial if the bail amount or bail bond is paid.
The Problems with the Bail Bond System
The controversy about mass imprisonment in the United States, particularly of young African-American men, has expanded to include the bail bond system.
Many people, including many in the legal profession, believe the bail bond system to be unfair since it forces low-income defendants to remain in jail or scrape together a 10% cash fee and the remaining bail-in collateral before they face any criminal charges. According to PrisonPolicy.org, 536,000 inmates are now being detained in jails around the country because they are unable to afford bail or the services of a bail bondsman.
Four states, including Illinois, Kentucky, Oregon, and Wisconsin, have banned bail bondsmen in favor of requiring a court to get a 10% deposit on the bail amount. 2018 saw a vote in California to do away with monetary bail in its courts.
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Bond of Appeal
What Is a Bond for Appeal?
A sum of money is held in reserve when an appeal is reviewed and determined. The appellant who is contesting the decision of the lower court posts an appeal bond, which is often in the amount of the first verdict (though it could be more).
How to Read an Appeal Bond
The losing party may file an appeal by taking the case to the higher court following a civil court decision. Only the concerns raised in the lower court during the first trial will be reviewed by the higher court; no new evidence will be considered. The defendant would often not be required to pay a judgment if the lower court ordered them to do so until the appeals process has been completed.
But an appeal can take a long time—in some situations, even years—to be decided. The losing defendant will be responsible for paying their own legal bills as well as any other case-related expenses during this time. Before the appeals process can begin, the defendant must deposit a surety bond since there is a chance that they might become bankrupt by the time the case is decided.
The Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 7, often known as the appeal bond, stipulates the necessity of the surety bond. To show good faith and commitment to the court's decision if the appellant loses, it must be paid to the court or a third party.
The appeal bond also acts as a safety net bond, aiding in shielding the court against pointless appeals and dishonest attempts to evade payment by using delaying tactics. For instance, if an appeal bond was not needed, a defendant may file an appeal to postpone payment of a court-ordered amount. Additionally, the defendant ensures that they will pay the original judgment if they lose the appeal by posting an appeal bond.
Particular Considerations
Both federal and state courts demand an appeal bond for losing defendants to protect their right to appeal a negative decision and postpone the plaintiff's execution of that judgment. An entire verdict must be posted together with interest during the appeals process.
Since an appeal bond may be expensive and defendants must post it a few weeks after the verdict, it is important to consider it early on in the case. Given that it would be used to pay interest or other expenses that may develop throughout the appeals process, the bond amount might be much more than the value of the decision.
State laws, which differ from state to state, control the bond's amount. For instance, the appeal bond amount must be 150% of the judgment amount in the state of California. The maximum appeal bond amount may be capped in several states. The amount of an appeal bond, for instance, is capped at $50 million per appellant in Florida.
To be eligible for an appeal bond, applicants must also post collateral equal to 100% of the bond's value in addition to the appeal bond payment. Due to the slim chance of success in an appeal, this collateral must be posted with a surety business. The victorious plaintiff may confiscate the defendant's property if they fail to deposit an appeal bail within two weeks of the lower court's entry of judgment.
If the appeal is rejected, the bond remains in force until the judgment, including any awarded fees and costs, is rendered, which might take several years to complete. After all, the appellant is no longer liable for the judgment because the payments have been made in full and the court has released the bond.
