If you were arrested or subject to a court proceeding or had
contact with the juvenile justice system when you were
under 18, there may be records kept by courts, police,
schools, or other public agencies about what you did. If the
court makes those records private (sealed), it could be
easier for you to:
How to Ask the Court to Seal Your Records
JV-595-INFO
There are now three ways that records may be sealed in
California. As of January 1, 2015, courts are required to
seal records in certain cases when the court finds that
probation (formal, or informal) is satisfactorily completed
or if your case was otherwise dismissed after the petition
was filed. If the court sealed all of your records at the end
of your case, you should have received a copy of the
sealing order, and you do not need to ask the court to seal
the records in that sealing order.
For more information about when the court seals your
records at the completion of probation, see form JV-596-
INFO.
Judicial Council of California, www.courts.ca.gov
Rev. September 1, 2018, Mandatory Form
Welfare and Institutions Code, §§ 781(b), 786, 786.5;
Evid. Code, § 788
Cal. Rules of Court, rules 5.830, 5.840, 5.850
JV-595-INFO, Page 1 of 2
How to Ask the Court to Seal Your Records
If, when you were 14 or older, the court found that you
committed a sex offense listed in Welfare and
Institutions Code section 707(b) for which you must
register under Penal Code section 290.008 because you
were paroled from the Department of Juvenile facilities.
Who can see your sealed records?
Find a job.
Get a driver’s license.
Get a loan.
Rent an apartment.
Go to college.
If the court sealed your records when
probation was terminated, you do not need to
ask for them to be sealed.
A sex or serious drug crime;
Murder or other violent crime; or
Forgery, welfare fraud, or other crime of dishonesty.
If you were convicted as an adult of an offense
involving moral turpitude, such as:
DMV can see your vehicle and traffic records and
share them with insurance companies.
The court may see your records if you are a witness
or involved in a defamation case.
If you apply for benefits as a nonminor dependent,
the court may see your records.
When do you not qualify to seal your
records?
If you are unsure if you qualify, ask your attorney.
A prosecuting attorney may see your records that were
sealed for an offense listed under Welfare and
Institutions Code section 707(b) in a later proceeding
for the reasons listed in section 781(d).
What if you owe restitution or fines?
The court may seal your records even if you have not paid
your full restitution order to the victim.
The court will not consider outstanding fines and court
ordered fees when deciding whether to seal your records,
but you are still required to pay the restitution, fines, and
fees, and your records can be looked at to enforce those
orders.
Who qualifies to ask the court to seal their
juvenile records?
If the court has not already sealed your records, you can
ask the court to make that order, if:
You are at least 18 or it has been at least five years since
your case was closed; and
You have been rehabilitated to the satisfaction of the
court.
If you have more than one juvenile case or contact and/or
are unsure if your records were sealed by the court, ask
your attorney or probation officer or the juvenile court
clerk in the county where you had a case or contact.
If probation sealed your diversion records for
satisfactory completion, you may wish to ask
the court to seal any remaining records of
your behavior.
As of January 1, 2018, if you participate in a diversion
program or other supervision program instead of going to
court, and the probation department determines that you
satisfactorily completed that program, the probation
department will seal your probation department records
and the records for any program you were required to
complete. If the probation department determines that you
did not satisfactorily complete the program, it will not seal
those records, but will give you a form to tell you why and
a form that you can use to tell the court why you think you
did satisfactorily complete the program. If the court agrees
with you, it will order your probation and program records
sealed. Because probation did not seal any arrest records at
this time, you may want to ask the court to seal any other
records relating to this conduct when you are eligible to ask
for record sealing as explained on this form.
JV-595-INFO, Page 2 of 2
Rev. September 1, 2018
How to Ask the Court to Seal Your Records
What about sex offender registration?
(Penal Code, § 290)
If the court seals a record that required you to register as a
sex offender, the order will say you do not have to
continue to register.
When you file your petition, the probation department
will compile a list of every law enforcement agency,
entity, or person the probation department knows has a
record of your case, as well as a list of any prior
contacts with law enforcement or probation, and attach
it to your petition.
If you think there are agencies that might have records
on you that were never sent to probation, you need to
name those agencies, or the court will not know to seal
those records.
Take your completed form to the probation department
where you were on probation. (If you were not on
probation, take your form to any county probation
office where you have a juvenile record.) Note: A small
number of counties require you to take your form to the
court. More information on each county’s specific
requirements is available at
www.courts.ca.gov/28120.
htm.
If you are 26 years of age or older, you may have to pay
a fee. If you cannot afford the fee, ask the probation
department or the court about a fee waiver.
Probation will review your form and submit it to the
court within 90 days, or 180 days if you have records in
two or more counties.
If you qualify to have your juvenile records sealed, the
court will make an order to seal the eligible records
listed on your petition.
Important! The court can seal only records it knows
about. Make sure you list all records from all
counties where you have any records. The court will
tell you if it does not seal records from another court
that were listed on your petition, and you will need
to file a petition in that county to seal those records.
If the court grants your request, it will order each
agency, entity, or person on your list to seal your
records. The court will also order the records destroyed
by a certain date. If the sealed records are for a 707(b)
offense committed when you were 14 or older, the court
will not order those records destroyed.
The court will provide you with a copy of its order. Be
sure to keep it in a safe place.
If your records are sealed, do you have to
report the offenses in the sealed records on
job, school, or other applications?
No. Once your records are sealed, the law treats those
offenses as if they did not occur and you do not need to
report them. However, the military and some federal
agencies may not recognize sealing of records and may be
aware of your juvenile justice history, even if your records
are sealed. If you want to enlist in the military or apply for
a job requiring you to provide information about your
juvenile records, seek legal advice about this issue.
Questions?
If you are not sure if you qualify to seal your records or if
you have other questions, talk to a lawyer. The court is not
allowed to give you legal advice. More information about
sealing your records can be found at
www.courts.ca.gov/28120.htm.
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How do you ask to have your records sealed?
You must fill out a court form. Form JV-595, Request
to Seal Juvenile Records, at
www.courts.ca.gov/forms.htm, can be used, or your
court may have a local form.
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The court will review your petition. The court may
decide right away to seal your juvenile records, or the
court may order a hearing. If there is a hearing, you will
receive a notice in the mail with the date, time, and
location of the hearing. If the notice says your hearing is
“unopposed” (meaning there is no disagreement with
your request), you may choose not to go.
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Can employers see your records if they are
not sealed?
Juvenile records are not allowed to be disclosed to most
employers, and employers are not allowed to ask about or
consider your juvenile history in most cases. There are
exceptions to this rule if you are applying to be a peace
officer or to work in health settings. Also, federal
employers may still have access to your juvenile history.
You should seek legal advice if you have questions of what
an employer can ask about you.
If you are not sure what contacts you might have had
with law enforcement, you can get your criminal history
record from the Department of Justice. See
http://oag.
ca.gov/fingerprints/security for more information.
You can request the court to unseal your records if
you want to have access to them or allow someone
else to see them.
If your sealed record was for a 707(b) offense when you
were 14 or older, the prosecutor, probation, and the
court may unseal your records if you are charged with a
later felony.
How to Ask the Court to Seal Your Records
JV-595-INFO
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