Surety Liable for Attorney's Fees, But Only Up to Bond's Face Amount
In Colonial American Casualty and Surety Co. v. Scherer, the Third Court of Appeals has held that the surety on a bond securing the original estate administrator could be liable for a successor administrator's attorney's fees in an action against the former administrator for mismanagement of the estate. However, the Court limited the surety's liability for such fees to the bond's face amount.
I find it surprising that the surety is liable when they never agreed to guarantee the performance of the succesor. This ruling could really change the underwriting practices when a surety evaluates this type of court bond.