Probate Court Bond Information
Consumer Q&A on Estate Bonds, Guardianship Bonds, Probate Court Bonds
 

Guardianship bonds are issued by many different insurance carriers.  Most places you call will offer only one insurance carrier for bonds.  Some agencies who specialize in Probate and Surety Bonds could have multiple insurance carriers.  Each carrier has its own state-filed rates for a guardians bond.  Unlike other types of bonds, guardianship bonds are usually priced on a sliding scale of tiered rates per thousand in penalty.  Different rate schedules for bonds may apply based on specific guardianship court case characteristics.  For instance, if the bond is twice the value of the guardianship assets, it's often much less to purchase the guardian bond. 

 

Court will require an original surety bond / guardianship bond that has been signed by the principal. Typically, since Ohio guardian bonds need an original signature, most probate bond companies will deliver bond directly to applicant.  We will occasionally mail guardian bond directly to attorney upon request, but it will still require the applicants original signature.  An attorney acting on someone else behalf, or other person with valid power of attorney or other legal document authorizing to act on someone else's behalf will not authorize signature on Ohio Guardianship bond - it must be an original signature by the applicant.

 

It's important to realize the significance of a bond. A Guardianship Bond protects the estate from malfeasance or misappropriation of assets.  Even if an expense is related to the guardianship, it may require court approval. Some expenses such as annual premium for a guardianship bond seem like obvious estate costs, but it's important to check with your attorney or the Court.

Civil Court Surety Bonds are unique and different from other bonds, or insurance, in many different ways. One important distinction is that a probate bond, whether guardianship or estate, cannot be canceled without an order from the Court.

Yes, there are sometimes circumstances the principal, or the bonding company, would like to cancel a bond. But that is not possible. By law, only the Court can discharge, or cancel, a Surety Bond. The insurance carrier is prohibited by law from canceling a probate bond until the Judge says it's okay.

Easy fix... once the case has concluded, judge will issue a 'FINAL ACCOUNTING' or other order that will usually contain language discharging bond. It's often found at the very end of such order, almost unn...

 

YES! Provided you meet other qualifications, residing outside of Ohio will not disqualify you from obtaining bond from our agency. We often hear customers indicate other agents aren't able to help clients if they live out of Ohio. We have direct access to multiple brokerages licensed in all 50 states.

 

Many insurance agents are like swiss army knives... they have an arsenal of tools ...ehhh insurance carriers... to help you find the right coverage. But general insurance agents don't specialize in any particular field. Since we write A LOT of bonds, more per week than many agents write in a year, our insurance practice offers any type of Civil Surety Bond you could think of, from multiple bond carriers. YES - we issue both Ohio Professional License Bonds, and Ohio Public Official Bonds.

 

Typically speaking with most insurance companies issuing bonds, a pro-rated refund is provided effective date of court order releasing bond.

We often have requests from guardians asking to cancel a bond. Once an Ohio probate court guardianship bond is issued, the insurance carrier - and the guardian - are on the hook until the court issues an order discharging bond. Insurance carrier is prohibited from canceling bond until court orders discharged. Unlike most other insurance and bonds, a principal cannot simply request the bond be terminated.

Simple solution: Just email us the court order discharging bond, and we'll submit to carrier for pro-rated refund (after the first year). First year premium is always fully earned upon issuance.

​Although probate court matters may seem simple, and court personnel may accept filings directly from applicants, many intricacies are involved with any estate.

When an estate bond is issued, applicant is ultimately responsible for any liability, but insurance carrier issuing bond is initially responsible for claims against bond. Under certain circumstances, if estate administrator disburses money not pre-authorized by court, bond could be ordered to pay.  This is even if expense was incurred for benefit of estate, even if no malfeasance was intended.  Many other difficult estate issues may arise throughout the estate administration.  We highly recommend to obtain a qualified attorney.


While probate courts will accept filings ...

 

These questions are best answered by an Ohio attorney experienced in probate matters. Phil Pavarini, leading Ohio probate bond agent, recommends contacting your local bar association for more information about finding, interviewing, and selecting an attorney. While Pavarini is unable to recommend, upon request, a specific probate attorney, his firm can email list of attorneys who've handled probate in the past. We do not recommend any specific attorneys.

 

We often answer calls from frustrated consumers seeking a probate bond.  They've been muddling through the often cumbersome court process, being directed from office to office, desk to desk, scheduled for hearing after hearing, and paying fee after fee.  More than once a court has, almost whimsically, advised a probate bond applicant that 'it's no problem, just call any insurance agent!'... only to find agent after agent is unable to help them.

One of the first requirements of any probate bond is to have an attorney.  But bonds are based on the assumption their will be no risk for the insurance carrier to suffer any loss.  The probate bond could be thought of as the carrier being you're 'co-signo...

Ohio Probate Bond Requirements

When considering requirements to obtain Ohio probate court bonds, it’s important to understand the Court’s requirements to file a case are often very different than the insurance carrier’s requirements to obtain bond. We get daily calls from frustrated consumers attempting to obtain a probate bond. Let’s clarify some of the confusion…

Court requirements could be regulated by each jurisdiction’s local court rules, statutes, regulations, administrative code, or other governmental policy.  Such requirements could vary widely, not only by jurisdiction, but also by Judge or Magistrate.

Insurance carriers issue Probate Court Bonds.  In a nutshell, a probate b...