Using an Attorney for a Bailbonds man in Texas
By handling your bail bond through your lawyer, instead of hiring a bail bond service, you not only get the convenience of working with a single business, but you can potentially save thousands of dollars in fees.
At our law office, our founding lawyer has been representing clients in San Antonio and throughout Bexar County for 15 years. We are committed to providing professional service that is built to serve your needs and exceed your expectations. We are a client-service driven law office. We make sure that when you rely on us for your representation and your bond service that we work as hard as we can to represent your interests.
The Advantage of Working With an Attorney Bond Service
Texas law states that a lawyer can provide bail bonds service to his or her clients. While we cannot offer bond service if you are relying on court-appointed legal counsel for your criminal defense or if you don’t intend on also using us as your attorney, we think there are real advantages to working with our firm for your bond, including:
- Affordability — Whatever money you pay us to post bond comes directly from your attorney fees for your case, potentially saving you thousands of dollars versus using an independent bail bondsman.
- Convenience — As your criminal defense lawyer, whether you are being charged with DWI or a violent felony, we provide you with representation in all aspects of your criminal case. You only have to work with one company to handle your defense and your bond.
- Ethical Practice — Attorneys are strictly governed by tightly controlled bounds of ethics. You can rely on us to watch out for the best interests in your criminal case and the related bond hearing.
If you are going to hire an attorney for your criminal defense, and you need bail bond service from $250 up to $500,000*, then consider our law firm for your needs.
*Total bonds may add up to $500,000 per client, however, there is a limit of $50,000 per charge.
Contact us Online for More Information
For immediate bonding and jail release information call our 24 hour Bail Bond Hotline or chat with us online RIGHT NOW. To request more non-urgent information about our bond service, please contact us using our convenient online form, or if you need to discuss your criminal defense with our attorney call to schedule a free consultation.
Answers to Common Questions About Bail Bond in Texas
What is a Bond?
A Bond is what secures a person’s release from jail, pending his or her day in court. When a person is arrested, a judge or magistrate will set a bond based on the criminal charge pending against the arrested person. The bond is set at a particular dollar amount which can usually be posted in one of two ways: 1. Cash; or 2. Surety. Whichever way the bond is posted, the bond acts as a guarantee that the arrested person appears in court. If the arrested person fails to appear in court as directed, the bond posted can be forfeited and that bond money goes to the court as a penalty for failure to appear.
What is the Difference Between a Cash Bond and a Surety Bond?
A Cash bond is a way to secure someone’s release from jail by paying the full amount of the bond in cash. The jail or sheriff will only accept the exact amount of the bond, and generally will only accept payment made in cash, and will not accept credit cards, checks, or other forms of payment. This bond money is held by the court until the arrested person’s case is disposed of, and then it is returned, minus administrative fees, to the person who paid the cash bond. If the Court forfeits the bond because the arrested person fails to appear in court when directed, that cash is kept by the Court, and none of it is refunded.
A Surety bond is another way to secure someone’s release from jail by hiring someone who is authorized to post surety bonds, usually a bailbondsman or an attorney. The surety only charges a percentage of the total bond amount to post the bond, and that fee is the surety’s to keep, whether the arrested person appears in court or not. However, the surety is then liable to the court for the full amount of the bond for any failure to appear in court by the arrested person.
What is the Advantage of Using an Attorney Instead of a Bailbondsman to Post a Surety Bond?
The advantage of hiring an attorney to post a surety bond instead of a bailbondsman is that an attorney can do things a bailbondsman cannot. An attorney can appear in court and help defend against the criminal charge itself. An attorney can get bonds set or reinstated when needed. Also, an attorney has higher ethical obligations to help clients as mandated by the Texas State Bar. When you hire the Law Office, for legal representation on a criminal charge, all bond fees paid for bonding on that criminal charge are credited toward legal fees, so the bond ends up costing NO ADDITIONAL MONEY.
Bexar County Bond Fees
Bond Fees for Class B Misdemeanor Charges and Above
At our firm, we offer bail amounts to our clients for as little as $250 and as much as $50,000. While we can only provide bail service to people who also hire us to handle their criminal defense matter, we have helped people facing a wide range of criminal charges from drug crimes to domestic violence get free on bail.
Unlike other San Antonio bail bonds offices, we apply your fee directly to the attorney fees of your case, providing you service, convenience and value by working with us. There are real advantages to hiring a lawyer instead of a bail bondsman when you need someone to post bond for you.
Available Bond Amounts
We offer bonds for our clients in the following amounts:
| $10,000 and Under | $11,000 – $30,000 | $31,000 – $50,000 |
| $250 | $11,000 | $31,000 |
| $500 | $12,000 | $32,000 |
| $750 | $13,000 | $33,000 |
| $1,000 | $14,000 | $34,000 |
| $1,500 | $15,000 | $35,000 |
| $2,000 | $16,000 | $36,000 |
| $2,500 | $17,000 | $37,000 |
| $3,000 | $18,000 | $38,000 |
| $3,500 | $19,000 | $39,000 |
| $4,000 | $20,000 | $40,000 |
| $4,500 | $21,000 | $41,000 |
| $5,000 | $22,000 | $42,000 |
| $5,500 | $23,000 | $43,000 |
| $6,000 | $24,000 | $44,000 |
| $6,500 | $25,000 | $45,000 |
| $7,000 | $26,000 | $46,000 |
| $7,500 | $27,000 | $47,000 |
| $8,000 | $28,000 | $48,000 |
| $9,000 | $29,000 | $49,000 |
| $10,000 | $30,000 | $50,000 |
If a family member is out the state and cannot come to Texas, can you help them bond a friend or family member out of a Texas Jail?
If someone is out of state and cannot come to Texas, they are able to post a bond via telephone and fax/email using either a credit/debit card, wire transfer or a piece of property. If someone calls us to collect from the jail, we are able to gather the information they provide to us, contact their family/friends for them and arrange a bail bond. Once arranged, then we can post a bond to get the defendant released from custody.
If the judge orders “cash only” bond, what does that mean?
Cash Only means that the jail will accept only “Cash Money” as a form of payment to secure a defendant’s release from custody. Not a paper bond. “Cash or Bond” means that the jail will accept either a “Paper Bond” or “Cash Money” as a form of payment to secure a defendant’s release from custody. Both can be considered appearance bonds unless the “Cash Only” designation is for unpaid fines, in which case the “Cash Money” paid to secure the defendant’s release from custody is likely to be applied to the unpaid fine amount by the court.
How does the bail bonds process work? In other words, let’s say someone has a $30,000 secured bond, and family members want to get him out but they do not have $30,000 on hand, what would they do?
The first thing to do is to contact a reputable Bail Bond Company to arrange the bond. In this example of a $30,000.00 bond the required in accordance with the law is to secure collateral (Something that has a value of $30,000.00 or more) that the Bond Company could hold in their possession or attach a lien to. The Bond Company will also charge as their fee for posting the bond 10% of the bond plus expenses. ($3,000.00 + expenses) Expenses vary and are mostly related to costs of lien attachments, notarization of documents and time of day the bond is posted, although Bond Companies fees can vary.
A lot of people assume that if a bond is secured, they can get out by only paying 10% of the bond amount and no other property or cash is required. Is that correct?
That is a common misconception. If you contract with a Bail Bond Company the fee governed by law is 10% of the bond + expenses. But collateral is required on all bonds posted in the State of Texas.
Do you handle all the court paperwork once someone hires your company as far as filing with the court?
Yes, we produce all the court required documents necessary to secure the release from custody of a criminal defendant after we are contracted with.