The Stale Power of Attorney
Raymond has held an Alabama bail bond agent license for ten years and writes under Surety A's power of attorney. In March he signs an agent contract with Surety B but never completes B's appointment paperwork. Through June he keeps writing on photocopies of A's power of attorney - 14 bonds totaling $212,000 in exposure - and collects roughly 10% premiums, but six of those bonds never make it into his bond register. On July 2, Surety A files a termination of his appointment. On August 14, one of the June defendants fails to appear in Montgomery County and the court notifies the surety. Raymond calls you, the agency's compliance manager, asking whether "the paperwork problem" matters now that the bond has gone bad.
1. Separate the licensing issue from the appointment issue. Which of the 14 bonds were written with authority, and who bears the liability on the August 14 forfeiture notice?
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A state license and a surety appointment are different things. The license lets Raymond transact bail bond business at all; the appointment (and the specific power of attorney) is what gives him authority to obligate a particular surety.
June bonds: He was still appointed by Surety A and writing on A's power of attorney, so those bonds were written with authority even though he intended to move to Surety B. Intent is irrelevant; the appointment and POA in force at the time control. The signed B contract without a completed appointment gave him no authority to write for B - but he did not write for B, so that is a paperwork failure and a contract dispute, not an authority defect on these bonds.
Liability: The obligor on the August 14 bond is Surety A, which is why the court notified A. Forfeiture runs against A, and A will look to Raymond under the general agreement of indemnity and collateral held. Raymond's recordkeeping lapses do not shift the loss to the defendant's family or to the court.
After July 2: Any bond written on A's power of attorney after the termination is unauthorized. Third parties may still argue apparent authority against A, but Raymond has no authority to write it and is exposed personally and to discipline.
2. What must be reconstructed, filed, and reported - and what must Raymond not do while fixing it?
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Reconstruct the file: rebuild the bond register from receipts, court dockets, and the surety's bond ledger so every one of the 14 bonds shows defendant name, charge, court and case number, bond amount, premium collected, power of attorney serial number, cosigner/indemnitor, collateral taken, date written, and current disposition. The six missing entries get added with a dated note explaining they are reconstructions, not originals.
Report: confirm the surety's termination filing with the Department is accurate and that Raymond's own appointment records reflect it; disclose to Surety A both the six unrecorded bonds and any post-termination writing; self-report the appointment failure to the regulator rather than waiting for the August 14 forfeiture to surface it.
Coordinate on the forfeiture: notify the surety immediately, provide the complete file, and discuss locating and producing the defendant. Do not promise the court or the family anything the surety has not authorized.
Do not: backdate register entries, recreate a "clean" power of attorney, write any further bond on A's paper, or quietly switch future bonds to B before the appointment is actually on file. Backdating converts a recordkeeping violation into a fraud allegation and will end the license, not just the appointment.