Rule 3.312 - Justification of Bail Bond Companies, Individuals or Sureties in Shawnee County(a) No bond posted by a bail bond company, individual or corporate surety may be accepted by or on behalf of Shawnee County District Court unless the individual, bond company, or corporate surety posting such bond has obtained and is operating under an order of justification issued by the Shawnee County District Court. The Shawnee County District Court will issue such an order of justification only after a hearing on a petition filed in compliance with the terms of this rule.(b) The Shawnee County District Court Chief Judge will hold a hearing each year to determine petitions for orders of justification for the upcoming calendar year. The Clerk of the Court will send notice of the annual hearing date to all individuals and companies justified to post bonds in Shawnee County as of September 1 of the current calendar year. The Chief Judge may set other hearing dates as necessary or appropriate.(c) A bail bond company, individual or corporate surety seeking an order of justification from Shawnee County District Court must file a petition with the Clerk of the Court under the standards set forth in paragraph (e). There shall be no filing fee. In subsequent years, any person or company justified in Shawnee County at the time the petition is filed may file the petition under the existing case number. If a person or company is not justified at the time the petition is filed, the person or company may file the petition only under a new case number, regardless of whether the person or company was justified at an earlier time. (d) At least thirty (30) days prior to a hearing on justification, a petitioner must serve a copy of the filed petition on the Chief Judge and the District Attorney. A hearing on the petition may be stricken or the order of justification denied in whole or in part if affidavits of service of the petition do not appear in the court file at the time of the hearing on justification or if service has not been timely made. (e) The petition for justification shall clearly state the name or names in which authorization to post bail bonds is sought, and shall contain a true and correct copy of each of the following documents: (1) A Certificate of Authority from the Kansas Insurance Commission for the petitioner or underlying surety to do surety insurance business in the State of Kansas or a statement that the petitioner is not licensed and is seeking justification to act as a surety;(2) Proof of agency under K.S.A. 40-239 or a fully executed and current power of attorney for each agent, individual or corporation, authorized to execute surety bonds on behalf of each surety that may guarantee bonds under the justification order sought; (3) If justification is sought to post property bonds, a letter of credit, evidence of blocked interest account, or other form of guarantee effective for the period for which justification is sought; (4) A current list of petitioner's total bond obligations by county, segregating property bonds from surety bonds; (5) A truthful declaration signed under penalty of perjury by each proposed agent stating that person's full name, aliases, social security number, address, date of birth, and statement of misdemeanor and felony convictions; and current compliance with Continuing Education requirements; (6) Such other proof of financial, corporate and agent responsibility as the Chief Judge of the District Court shall find to be sufficient to justify the surety orproperty bond agent. (f) At the hearing of justification, the Court shall consider petitioner's proof of financial, corporate and agent responsibility, an obligations or proof submitted by the District Attorney and/or other interested parties, and any other information bearing on the sufficiency of the petition for justification. The Court shall deny any order of justification in whole or in part to the extent a petitioner files a petition that is incomplete or insufficient under the terms of this order, and may deny an order of justification in whole or in part for other good cause. Pursuant to K.S.A. 22-2809a, no person convicted of a felony shall act as a surety or agent of surety. (g) If approved, the Court shall sign an order of justification that shall designate the corporate surety in which surety bonds may be written, state the basis on which property bonds may be written, name the authorized agents, set the maximum amount that may be written on any one bond by each surety, and specify any other conditions of justification.(h) No order shall generally authorize a bonding company or individual to write bonds exceeding two hundred thousand dollars ($200,000) for any single bond, provided that any company or individual justified in this county may seek approval for authorization to bond for additional sums on an individual case. Approval shall be made by Court order, a copy of which the movant shall provide to the Shawnee County Department of Corrections. (i) This procedure shall not be in lieu of the requirement of Kansas Supreme Court Rule 114 requiring that there be attached to each property bond a sworn financial statement which identifies the assets relied upon and the total amount of liabilities contingent or otherwise. Any property pledged as surety for bail bond must have a non homestead equity valued at least at one and one half times the amount of the bond. (j) An order of justification shall be in full force and effect for the period specified in the order, in any event not to exceed one year. Authorization shall expire at midnight on December 31 of the year in which authorization to post bail bonds is effective.(k) The Shawnee County Department of Corrections, acting pursuant to DCR 3.307, or Clerk of the Court shall not accept a surety or property bond unless it can verify that the bond is posted under the conditions specified in a current order of justification. It shall be the responsibility of the petitioner to provide a true and current, file stamped or certified copy of the current order of justification and current photo of each authorized agent to the Clerk of the Court and the Director of the Shawnee County Department of Corrections before transacting business as a bail bond company in Shawnee County. (l) An order of justification may be suspended or revoked at any time upon determination of insufficiency or unreliability of the sureties or their agents or for such other reasons as the Court deems good cause. Suspension or revocation may be initiated by the Office of the District Attorney upon filing a notice of intent to seek suspension or revocation with the Clerk of the Court. The notice of intent to seek suspension or revocation is sought and shall be served on the bonding company whose justification is at issue. A hearing will be set within thirty (30) days of filing and service of the notice of intent to seek suspension or revocation. (m) The authority of the bail bond company, individual or surety to write bonds within this judicial district shall be terminated five (5) days after notice from the District Attorney to the Chief Judge of the Shawnee County District Court, the Clerk of the Court and Director of the Shawnee County Department of Corrections that an effective judgment has been entered against a bail bond company, individual or surety and the same has not been satisfied and, if on appeal, no appeal bond has been filed. Within five (5) days of being notified of such intention by the District Attorney's office, the bail bond company, individual or surety may make written request for a hearing before the Chief Judge. Whenever possible, such hearings shall occur not sooner than ten (10) or later than twenty (20) days after the request for hearing is made. The termination shall be stayed until the hearing. (n) During the period an order of justification is in effect, a petitioner may seek to add additional agents by filing with the Clerk of the Court and serving on the District Attorney a Notice of Intent to Add Agent(s) together with supporting information as required in paragraphs (e)(2) and (e)(5) of this order. Absent objection by the District Attorney, the intended agent(s) will be added without further order no later than the end of ten (10) court days after the filing and service of said notice. In the event of objection, petitioner may file a motion or review of the Notice of Intent to Add Agent(s), which shall be heard and determined by the Shawnee County District Court Chief Judge under the standards of this order. (o) A bail bond company must notify, in writing, the Shawnee County District Court Chief Judge and the Director of the Shawnee County Department of Corrections when an agent authorized to post bonds under an order of justification is terminated from employment with the bail bond company.