How to manage bonds

Bonds in eCourtDate record a bond number, the case number it belongs to, a collateral type, and a status. The Bonds page sits in the tab strip under **Cases**, alongside **Warrants**, **Attorneys**, and **Assessments**.

### Overview

Click **Cases** in the top navigation bar, then click **Bonds** in the tab strip. The page has three parts: a **Create Bond** card, a **Search Bonds** card, and a results table with **Bond Number**, **Case Number**, **Collateral Type**, **Client**, **Status**, **Created**, and **Updated** columns.

A bond record holds four fields, all of them free text: **Bond Number**, **Case Number**, **Collateral Type**, and **Status**. eCourtDate does not store a bond amount, bond conditions, or bail agent details on a bond, and it does not send messages when a bond changes. Use the record to keep a searchable list of the bonds tied to your case numbers.

Click the edit icon in the **Edit** column to open one bond. The bond page holds an **Edit Bond** card, an **Audit Logs** card, and a **Client** card when the record already has a client attached.

### Prerequisites

- A role with create and update permissions for bonds, set under **Admin** > **Users** > **Roles** in the **Enabled Permissions** picker
- The case number the bond belongs to, since the bond form has no case picker
- The values your agency uses for collateral type and status, since neither field offers a preset list

### How-To Steps

#### How to Create a Bond

1. Click **Cases** in the top navigation bar.
2. Click **Bonds** in the tab strip.
3. Enter a value in **Bond Number** in the **Create Bond** card.
4. Enter the case number in **Case Number**.
5. Enter the collateral type in **Collateral Type**.
6. Enter the current state of the bond in **Status**.
7. Click **Create**.

The new bond appears at the top of the results table and an alert confirms **Bond created**.

#### How to Search for Bonds

1. Enter a bond number in **Search** in the **Search Bonds** card.
2. Select **Archived** or **Trashed** to look for bonds in those states. Only one of the two can be selected at a time.
3. Click **Search**.
4. Click a column heading to sort the results, then click the arrow beside it to switch between ascending and descending order.
5. Click **Load more** below the table to add the next page of results.

#### How to Edit a Bond

1. Click the edit icon in the **Edit** column to open the bond.
2. Update **Bond Number**, **Case Number**, **Collateral Type**, or **Status** in the **Edit Bond** card.
3. Click **Save**. An alert confirms **Bond updated**.
4. Click **Close** to return to the list.

#### How to Archive, Trash, or Restore a Bond

1. Open the bond you want to change.
2. Click **Tools** in the button group at the top of the page.
3. Click **Archive** to move the bond out of the default list, or click **Trash** to remove it.
4. Click **Tools** > **Restore** on an archived or trashed bond to bring it back.

To change several bonds at once, select their checkboxes in the results table, click **Archive** or **Trash** (or **Restore** while you are viewing archived or trashed bonds), then click **Confirm**.

#### How to Export Bonds

1. Click **CSV** above the results table to download the bonds matching your current filters.
2. Click **PDF** above the results table to open your browser print dialog with all matching bonds loaded.
3. Click **PDF** on a single bond page to print that record.

### What to Expect

Bonds you create are available immediately and are scoped to the agency and region you are working in. Archived and trashed bonds drop out of the default list until you select **Archived** or **Trashed** in the **Search Bonds** card, and both states can be reversed with **Tools** > **Restore**.

The **Audit Logs** card on the bond page shows **Created By**, **Created**, **Updated**, and **Region**, so you can see who added the record and when it last changed. A bond does not track who made the last edit, only who created it. If the bond arrived through a data upload, a **Created by upload** button in that card links back to the upload.

Bonds also surface elsewhere in eCourtDate. When a bond has a client attached, the **Client** column links to that client and a **Client** card with a **View Client** button appears on the bond page. When an event carries the same case number as one or more bonds, the event page lists those bonds and links to each record.

### Best Practices

- Enter the case number exactly as your agency writes it on cases and events, because eCourtDate matches bonds to events on the case number.
- Fill in **Bond Number** on every bond. The **Search Bonds** box matches on the bond number, and the **Edit Bond** form will not save without it.
- Agree on a short list of **Status** and **Collateral Type** values with your team. Both fields are free text, so inconsistent entries are easy to create and hard to filter later.
- Use **Archive** for bonds you want out of the working list but still retrievable, and reserve **Trash** for records created in error.
- Export the list with **CSV** before a bulk archive or trash so you keep a copy of what changed.

### Frequently Asked Questions

**Q: Can I record a bond amount, bond conditions, or a bail agent?**

A: No. A bond record stores only **Bond Number**, **Case Number**, **Collateral Type**, and **Status**. There are no amount, condition, document, or bail agent fields on the bond form.

**Q: Can I attach a client to a bond?**

A: Not from the bond form. The **Create Bond** and **Edit Bond** cards have no client picker. When a bond already has a client attached, a **Client** card appears on the bond page with a **View Client** button.

**Q: Does the search box find bonds by case number?**

A: No. **Search** in the **Search Bonds** card matches the bond number. To see the bonds on a case, open an event with that case number and use the bond list on the event page.

**Q: Can I use bond data in an automated document?**

A: Yes. Go to **Admin** > **Automations** > **Auto Docs** and select bonds in the **Data Source** field.

**Q: Are bond statuses and collateral types configurable?**

A: There is nothing to configure. Both are plain text inputs, so whatever you type is stored as entered.

### Troubleshooting

**Issue:** The **Save** button is missing on a bond.

**Symptoms:** A banner at the top of the page reads "Bond was archived on" or "Bond was trashed on" with a date, and the **Edit Bond** card shows no **Save** button.

**Solution:** Click **Tools**, then click **Restore**. The banner clears and the **Save** button returns.

**Issue:** A bond you just created is not in the results table.

**Symptoms:** The list shows "No Bonds found." or the bond is missing from the results.

**Solution:** Clear the **Search** box, clear the **Archived** and **Trashed** checkboxes, then click **Search**. A bond saved without a bond number is not returned by a search, because the search matches on the bond number.

**Issue:** An edited bond will not save.

**Symptoms:** Clicking **Save** in the **Edit Bond** card does nothing and the **Bond Number** field is highlighted.

**Solution:** Enter a value in **Bond Number**. The field is required on the **Edit Bond** form even though the **Create Bond** card lets you leave it blank.

### Related Articles

- [How to Manage Cases](/how-to-manage-cases)
- [How to manage warrants](/how-to-manage-warrants)
- [How to Manage Events](/how-to-manage-events)
- [How to create upload templates](/how-to-create-upload-templates)