(a) An additional or supplemental bond does not discharge or affect the original bond. The original bond remains in full force and effect as if the additional or supplemental bond had not been given.
§ 996.250.Additional Or Supplemental Bond
Title 14. Of Miscellaneous Provisions · Chapter 2. Bonds and Undertakings · Article 12. New, Additional, and Supplemental Bonds · Enacted 1982 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 996.250 keeps an additional or supplemental bond from displacing the original, so both stay fully enforceable, the beneficiary may sue on either or both and recover separate judgments, though only one bond's award can be collected on the same claim, and sureties who pay can seek contribution from sureties on the other bond.
Full Text of § 996.250
(b) After an additional or supplemental bond is given, the principal and sureties are liable upon either or both bonds for injury caused by breach of any condition of the bonds. Subject to subdivision (c), the beneficiary may enforce the liability on either bond, or may enforce the liability separately on both bonds and recover separate judgments of liability on both.
(c) If the beneficiary recovers separate judgments of liability on both bonds for the same cause of action, the beneficiary may enforce both judgments. The beneficiary may collect, by execution or otherwise, the costs of both proceedings to enforce the liability and the amount actually awarded to the beneficiary on the same cause of action in only one of the proceedings, and no double recovery shall be allowed.
(d) If the sureties on either bond have been compelled to pay any sum of money on account of the principal, they are entitled to recover from the sureties on the remaining bond a distributive part of the sum paid, in the proportion the amounts of the bonds bear one to the other and to the sums paid.
Plain-English Summary
Adding a bond on top of an existing one doesn't retire the original. Subdivision (a) says the original bond keeps its full force exactly as though the additional or supplemental bond had never been given.
Because both bonds stay live, subdivision (b) lets the beneficiary choose how to enforce liability for an injury caused by a breach: sue on either bond alone, or pursue both and recover separate judgments against each. That flexibility comes with a limit in subdivision (c); if the beneficiary does recover separate judgments on both bonds for the same cause of action, both judgments can be enforced, but the beneficiary can only collect the costs of one proceeding and the amount awarded in one of them. No double recovery is allowed on the same claim.
Subdivision (d) then settles accounts between the bonds themselves. If sureties on one bond end up paying on the principal's behalf, they can recover a distributive share of what they paid from the sureties on the other bond, split in proportion to each bond's amount and to what each side paid.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does an additional or supplemental bond replace the original bond?
No. The original bond remains in full force as if the additional or supplemental bond had not been given.
Can the beneficiary sue on both bonds for the same breach?
Yes. The beneficiary may enforce liability on either bond, or enforce it separately on both and recover separate judgments.
Can the beneficiary collect twice for the same claim?
No. Only the costs and award from one of the two proceedings can be collected on the same cause of action.
What if sureties on one bond end up paying the whole claim?
They can recover a distributive share from the sureties on the other bond, in proportion to the amounts of the bonds and the sums paid.
Amendment History
Added by Stats. 1982, Ch. 998, Sec. 1.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 28, 2026.
· Official source
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