Maryland probate & fiduciary bonds.
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Before the register grants letters, most fiduciaries have to post a bond. It guarantees you’ll administer the estate honestly and according to law. The court or register sets the amount to the size of the estate — and we underwrite it. A surety specialist reviews your file and returns a quote, usually within one business day.
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How much does a Maryland probate & fiduciary bond cost?
It is underwritten: the premium is quoted from the bond amount and your financial picture, so there is no flat price to show.
Built for the appointment.
The register usually wants the bond on file before issuing letters, so it’s the gating step before you can act. Here is the whole process:
Send us the file
Apply online with the estate or guardianship details — the decedent or ward, the approximate value of the personal property, and the bond amount the court or register set.
A surety specialist underwrites it
A specialist reviews the estate, your financials and credit, and any collateral, then returns a quote. The penal sum is set by the court — underwriting decides approval and any collateral.
Execute & file
Once you bind, we issue the executed bond on the register’s required form with the power of attorney attached, ready to file so letters can be granted.
How a probate bond works, and what to have ready.
Why the court asks for it
A court has appointed you, or is about to, to manage someone else's money: as executor or administrator of an estate, or as a guardian or conservator. The court can require a bond before you act.
Who it protects
The estate and the people entitled to it: heirs, creditors, or the person under guardianship. If money is mishandled, they can recover the loss from the bond, up to the bond amount.
If there is a claim
The surety pays a valid claim and you repay the surety. A will can ask the court to waive the bond; the court decides.
Have these ready
- The court order or letters appointing you, or your petition if the appointment is pending
- The court and case number
- The bond amount the court set
- A summary of the assets you will control
- The will, if there is one
- Your attorney's name and contact details
What it is and who needs it.
What a fiduciary bond guarantees
When a court or the register appoints you to handle someone else’s money — as a personal representative of an estate, or a guardian or conservator of a minor or disabled person — it usually requires a bond before you can act.
The bond guarantees the beneficiaries and creditors that you’ll administer the estate honestly, account for every dollar, and follow Maryland law. If a fiduciary misappropriates assets, the surety makes the estate whole and then pursues the fiduciary.
Because the surety stands behind the whole estate, the bond is underwritten on your credit and finances, and a large penal sum can require collateral. A bond may be excused by the will or by written waiver of all interested persons — though even then the register can require a nominal bond to secure debts and inheritance taxes. We tell you what your file needs before you commit.
You need this bond if you’re
Claims, renewal, filing, and what sets the price.
If a claim is made
A court bond answers to the court and the party its order protects: if the judgment or order the bond secures is not satisfied, that party can claim against it, up to the penal sum the court set.
The surety pays a valid claim after the court rules, and you repay the surety. A court bond is a guarantee of your performance, not insurance for you.
Renewal and term
Term and renewal are set in the underwriter's quote; a court bond usually runs until the case or appeal it secures is resolved.
Keep the bond in force for as long as the obligation behind it runs.
How to file it
Execute & file. Once you bind, we issue the executed bond on the register’s required form with the power of attorney attached, ready to file so letters can be granted.
What sets the price
Court bonds are underwritten: the premium is quoted from the bond amount the court sets and your financial picture, so there is no flat price to show.
The application takes about ten minutes.
These are the actual underwriting fields — the estate or guardianship, the bond amount, your finances, and your credit. Submit once and a surety specialist returns a quote, typically within one business day. Free until your bond is issued.
Start the application →Common questions.
Other Maryland bonds.
The same bond in nearby states.
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Get bonded before the register grants letters.
Send us the estate details and a surety specialist sizes, underwrites, and quotes the bond — typically within one business day. Free until your bond is issued.