AN AIRBUS 319 WAS DISPATCHED IN NON COMPLIANCE WITH A DEFERRED CARGO DOOR WARNING ECAM DEFERRED. MAINT RELEASE NOT ISSUED AT DEP STATION VERIFYING DOOR CHKED CLOSED AND LOCKED.

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WE WERE THE OUTBOUND CREW ON FLT FROM ZZZ TO ZZZ1. WE MET THE INBOUND CREW; AND THEY TOLD US THAT THE JET WAS GOOD EXCEPT THE FORWARD CARGO DOOR ECAM WAS INOP AND THAT WE WOULD HAVE TO VERIFY THAT THE CARGO DOOR IS CLOSED AND LOCKED WITH THE GND CREW. WE LOOKED OVER THE PAPERWORK; AND THE CAPT SIGNED THE FLT PLAN. THE MAINT RELEASE HAD ONE INBOUND LOG ITEM THAT SAID 'COMPLY WITH REQUIREMENTS UPDATING THE DEFERRED ITEM IS NOT REQUIRED.' DEFERRED ITEM. WE READ THE PLACARD AND IT SAID AGAIN THAT THE CARGO DOOR MUST BE VISUALLY VERIFIED CLOSED WITH GND PERSONNEL. NO ONE WAS IN OPS WHEN THE CAPT SIGNED THE RELEASE; SO WE JUST LEFT IT ON THE COUNTER. AT THE JET; THE ACARS 'RELEASE VERIFICATION' PROMPT CAME BACK WITH 'RELEASE NOT SIGNED AND NO MAINT RELEASE. THINKING THAT THIS WAS BECAUSE OPS DID NOT INPUT OUR RELEASE; THE CAPT SIGNED THE RELEASE USING THE ACARS. AT PUSH TIME WE CHKED ACARS AGAIN; AND THIS TIME WE GOT.' RELEASE; NO MAINT RELEASE. WE KNEW THE RELEASE WAS NOW GOOD; BUT I THOUGHT THE 'NO MAINT RELEASE' MADE NO SENSE AND MUST BE AN ACARS COMPUTER PROB. WE DOUBLE CHKED THE LOGBOOK AND NO WRITE-UPS HAD BEEN MADE BY THE INBOUND CREW AND THE MAINT RELEASE WAS RELEASED FROM ZZZ2 WHERE THE PLANE HAD JUST COME FROM. I THOUGHT SURELY THIS MAINT RELEASE MUST BE CURRENT. THE GND CREW WAS EAGER TO PUSH AND THE CAPT DID CONFIRM WITH THEM THAT THEY HAD VISUALLY CHKED THE CARGO DOORS CLOSED. WE HAD COMPLIED ENTIRELY WITH THE PLACARD INFO. AFTER GETTING AIRBORNE; WE QUERIED MAINT VIA ACARS; AND HE INITIALLY SAID OUR MAINT RELEASE FROM ZZZ2 WAS CURRENT. WE ASKED HIM ABOUT THE 'NO MAINT RELEASE' IN THE ACARS; AND HE THEN SAID A NEW LOG WAS AUTOMATICALLY GENERATED BY THE PLANE WHEN IT LANDED AT ZZZ; AND THAT WE WERE SUPPOSED TO BE ISSUED A NEW MAINT RELEASE BEFORE DEP. I WAS CERTAINLY CONFUSED. WE FOLLOWED THE PLACARD COMPLETELY. THE PLACARD INFO NEVER SAID THAT WE HAD TO GET A NEW MAINT RELEASE AFTER THE CARGO DOORS WERE CLOSED IMMEDIATELY BEFORE PUSHBACK; IN FACT IT SAID 'UPDATING THE DEFERRED ITEM NOT REQUIRED.' I LEARNED THAT I SHOULD ALWAYS CHK WITH MAINT CTLR WHEN YOU GET 'NO MAINT RELEASE' EVEN IF IN YOUR MIND YOU ARE SURE YOUR MAINT RELEASE IS CURRENT. I WILL NEVER ASSUME THAT AGAIN. I DO THINK; HOWEVER; THAT THE PLACARD INFO COULD HAVE BEEN CLEARER; ESPECIALLY SINCE WE WERE AT A NON-MAINT STATION. MY RECOMMENDATION WOULD BE THAT PLACARD INFO SHOULD TELL YOU TO GET A NEW MAINT RELEASE; IF ONE IS NEEDED.