Do
- Appear at every hearing, on time, even the short procedural ones.
- Keep counsel's number and the court's department number written down somewhere that is not your phone.
- Tell the bail agency immediately if your address, phone, or employment changes.
- Follow every release condition — protective orders, no-contact terms, testing, monitoring.
- Keep making the payment plan payments, or call before missing one.
Don't
- Do not miss a hearing. If something is genuinely impossible, call counsel and the agency before the hearing, not after.
- Do not leave California without checking your release conditions and telling the agency — see can you leave California while on bail.
- Do not contact a protected party, even if they reach out first.
- Do not pick up a new case. A new arrest can end the release and the bond.
- Do not discuss the case on social media or with anyone but your attorney.
If a hearing is missed
Obligations to the agency are separate from the court's
The indemnitor's contract has its own terms — 4 obligations after signing a bail bond contract covers them, and how to get out of a bail bond contract explains the exit.