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.
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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
For your protection and privacy, please press the Clear
This Form button after you have printed the form.
