2020 Georgia Code
Title 33 - Insurance
Chapter 24 - Insurance Generally
Article 1 - General Provisions
§ 33-24-48. Acceptance of Surety Insurance Companies as Sureties Upon Bonds of Persons or Corporations; Rights and Liabilities of Corporate Sureties

Any surety insurance company or any other corporation or company that may do a surety insurance business, incorporated and organized under the laws of this state or of any other state or a foreign country for the purpose of transacting the business of surety insurance, which has complied with all requirements of law for license to transact business in this state, upon proper proof of compliance and upon production of evidence of solvency and credit satisfactory to the judge, head of the department, or other officer or officers authorized to approve and accept bonds, may be accepted as surety upon the bond of any person, company, or corporation required by law to execute bonds in lieu of any surety or sureties otherwise required by law. Any surety insurance company or other company doing a surety insurance business may be released from its liability on the bond on the same terms and conditions as are prescribed by law for the release of individuals, it being the purpose of this Code section to enable the companies and corporations doing a surety insurance business to become sureties on all bonds required by law to be taken with all the rights and subject to all the liabilities of individual sureties.

(Ga. L. 1887, p. 108, § 2; Civil Code 1895, § 2142; Civil Code 1910, § 2551; Code 1933, § 56-1102; Code 1933, § 56-2435, enacted by Ga. L. 1960, p. 289, § 1.)

- For article analyzing problems and obligation of parties in personal suretyship, see 5 Mercer L. Rev. 289 (1954).

OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

At least one corporate surety required for full amount of bond.

- Requirement of two sureties under former Code 1933, § 24-2607 (see O.C.G.A. § 15-16-5) was to ensure that any recovery against the sheriff could be satisfied by either of two sureties who were each jointly and severally liable for the full amount of the statutorily fixed bond penalty; it was thus more than clear that under former Code 1933, §§ 56-2435 and 89-415 and Ga. L. 1951, p. 741, § 1 (see O.C.G.A. §§ 33-24-48,45-4-6, and45-4-7), there must be one bond in the penal sum fixed by statute and at least one corporate surety for the full amount of the bond. 1976 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 76-31.

RESEARCH REFERENCES

ALR.

- Authority of officer or agent to bind corporation as guarantor or surety, 34 A.L.R.2d 290.