Discharge Forms
At the end of each case (bond) Budget Bail Bond Agency must be released, by the court where the case ended, from any liability on the bond before the indemnitors (the people who guaranteed, “co-signed”) can be released from a bond and have collateral, if any, returned. Budget Bail Bond Agency must receive one of the two forms listed below; they must be properly filled out, signed by either a court clerk or a judge and MUST have a court seal affixed.
It has been our experience that, if you provide an Order Discharging Surety from Bond to the court on the last day of the case, i.e., sentencing, dismissal, Nolle Pros or other disposition, you will usually have no resistance from the judge to signing the Order Discharging Surety from Court. You should give this form to your attorney, if you have one, and ask the attorney to get it signed. If you do not have an attorney, you can ask the judge, in court, if they will sign it right then and there when your case if being concluded.
When our clients have run into opposition from the court in signing one of the forms it is usually because they did not ask while they were in front of the judge, they usually waited until later to ask.
In some very rare cases, the court may refuse to sign one of the forms below. In that case, simply provide them with a copy of the other form and request that they complete, sign, and seal it.
In the unlikely event that the court refuses to sign either of the forms, you should ask your attorney to obtain one from the court.
For all cases where the bond posted was $25,000 or more, an O.D.S.F.B. MUST be signed by the judge and returned to Budget Bail Bond Agency.
It is important to remember that only a judge can sign the Order Discharging Surety From Bond (ODSFB) and only a clerk can sign the Certificate of Discharge (C.O.D.)
It is the responsibility of the defendant and their indemnitors to obtain one of the two forms below, properly filled out, signed, and sealed and to give it to Budget Bail Bond Agency.
If you do not obtain one of the forms Budget make a request on your behalf that the court sign one of the forms, but keep in mind that, when mailed to a court, it could set on a desk for months without a response. The court finds it difficult to refuse when you are standing in front of them making the request but finds it very easy to ignore a request when received in the mail.
Click in the parentheses below to open the form
Order Discharging Surety from Bond (ODSFB)
Certificate of Discharge (COD)