New Mexico probate & fiduciary bonds.
We size, underwrite & quote it.

Before the court grants letters, most fiduciaries have to post a bond.
It guarantees you’ll administer the estate honestly and according to law.
The amount tracks 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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Required of fiduciaries under NMSA 1978, § 45-3-603–604 when the will, an heir, or the court calls for it

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Amount tracks the estate’s value plus one year’s estimated income under § 45-3-604

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Underwritten on personal credit and financials; collateral may apply to a large estate

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How it works

Built for the grant of letters.

Where a bond is required, the court won’t issue letters until it’s filed and approved, so the bond is usually the last step before you can act. Here is the whole process:

TODAY · 10 MINUTES

Send us the file

Apply online with the order or petition setting the bond, the estate’s value, and the fiduciary’s details. The estate size and any restricted assets drive the penal sum.

WITHIN 1 BUSINESS DAY

A surety specialist underwrites it

A specialist reviews the file, a personal credit check, and any financials, then returns a quote. The amount tracks the estate — underwriting decides approval and any collateral on a large estate.

ON APPROVAL

Execute & file

Once you bind, we issue the executed bond on the court’s required form, naming New Mexico as obligee for the interested persons as the statute requires, ready for the court to approve so letters can issue.

About this bond

What it is and who needs it.

What a fiduciary bond protects

When the court appoints you to handle someone else’s money — as a personal representative of an estate, or a conservator or guardian for a protected person — it usually requires a bond before granting letters.

The fiduciary bond guarantees that you perform all your duties according to law: that you inventory the assets, account honestly, and don’t misuse the estate. New Mexico bonds name the state as obligee for the benefit of the interested persons, and if you breach those duties the bond makes the estate or protected person whole — and the surety looks to you to repay it.

Because the surety stands behind the estate, the bond is underwritten on your personal credit and finances, and a large estate can require collateral or restricted-asset arrangements. We tell you what your file needs before you commit.

New Mexico StatuteNMSA 1978, § 45-3-603 requires a personal representative to give bond when required by the will, demanded by an interested person under § 45-3-605, or ordered by the court. Section 45-3-604 sets the amount, unless stated in the will, to the personal representative’s estimate of the value of the personal estate plus the estimated income for the next year, reducible by the value of assets deposited so they cannot be disposed of without court order; the bond names New Mexico as obligee for the interested persons and is conditioned on faithful discharge of all duties. Conservator bonds are governed by § 45-5-411, in the aggregate capital value of the conservatorship estate plus one year’s estimated income.

You need this bond if you’re

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A personal representative (executor or administrator) appointed to administer a New Mexico estate

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A conservator of the estate of a minor or an incapacitated or protected adult under article 5

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A guardian managing the property of someone who cannot manage it alone

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Counsel or a family member arranging the bond so the court can grant letters and you can begin administering

The application takes about ten minutes.

These are the actual underwriting fields — the estate, the bond amount the court set, the fiduciary, and your finances. Submit once and a surety specialist returns a quote, typically within one business day. Free until your bond is issued.

Start the application →

FAQs

Common questions.

If yours isn't here, the bond team can usually answer within the hour.

What is a New Mexico probate or fiduciary bond? +

It is the bond a court requires before granting letters to a fiduciary — a personal representative, conservator, or guardian. Under NMSA 1978, § 45-3-604 (and § 45-5-411 for conservators), it is conditioned on the faithful discharge of all the fiduciary’s duties according to law, naming New Mexico as obligee for the interested persons and protecting the estate or protected person from mismanagement or fraud.

How much does it cost? +

It is underwritten, not flat-rated. The amount tracks the size of the estate — under § 45-3-604 that is the value of the personal estate plus a year’s estimated income. A surety specialist then reviews the fiduciary’s personal credit and finances and returns a premium quote, usually within one business day.

Who decides the bond amount? +

The court does, on the measure the statute sets. Under § 45-3-604 the amount tracks the value of the personal estate plus a year’s estimated income, reducible by assets deposited so they can’t be disposed of without a court order. Conservator bonds follow § 45-5-411. We size and underwrite the bond to whatever amount the court sets.

Can the bond be waived? +

Sometimes. Under § 45-3-603 a personal representative gives bond when the will requires it, an interested person demands it under § 45-3-605, or the court orders it — otherwise it may not be required. Conservatorships are generally bonded under § 45-5-411, which the court waives only where it finds protection unnecessary and never for a paid professional conservator.

How fast can the bond be issued? +

A specialist typically returns a quote within one business day of a complete application. Once you bind and any collateral is in place, the executed bond issues on the court’s form, naming New Mexico as obligee, ready for the court to approve so letters can issue.

Related bonds

Other New York bonds.

Get bonded so the court can grant letters.

Send us the estate details and the amount the court set, and a surety specialist sizes, underwrites, and quotes the bond — typically within one business day. Free until your bond is issued.

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