Clearing Your Criminal Record

If you made a mistake when you were younger and were convicted of a crime, you may not realize how easily that old conviction can come back to haunt you. With the advent of the Internet, your old conviction is now easily accessible to employers, government agencies, colleges, and even your neighbors. Having a prior conviction can prevent you from getting a job, applying for trade or professional licenses, obtaining security clearances, getting a student loan, obtaining public housing, becoming a teacher, or traveling to foreign countries for vacations or business.

Many people mistakenly believe that juvenile convictions vanish when you turn 21 years of age. Other people believe that old misdemeanors disappear after their sentence and probation are completed. Hardworking people who made mistakes years ago believe that their felony convictions evaporate just because they served their time, completed their conditions of probation, and received a "Certificate of Discharge".

The truth is that no juvenile, misdemeanor, or felony conviction EVER disappears from your record automatically. To clear your misdemeanor or felony record, you need to make a motion to the Court to Vacate your prior conviction. If the conviction was in juvenile court, you must move the court to for an Order to Seal your record. These motions are often referred to as Expungements.

Here are the basic requirements for an Expungement: