Opinion Number

Dear Sheriff Bourgeois:

Your request for an Attorney General's opinion was forwarded to me for research and reply. As I understand it, your question is as follows:

May a bondsman "stack" powers of attorney granted by a single surety in order to meet a total bail requirement, which exceeds the amount authorized on any individual power of attorney?

Under the law of principal and agency, the bail undertaking is a contract of suretyship whereby the bondsman acts as the agent for an insurer, who is the surety on the bond. The power of attorney is the authorization of the surety that allows the…