A. The new statute is extremely detailed and the requirements to establish eligibility for and success of your application for record sealing are stringent. ​ The initial process of establishing eligibility is complex and requires “in person” contact and interface with the Courts and the Clerks of the Court to obtain your case records. Thereafter, the process of analysis of your record is complicated and time consuming. Following a determination of eligibility, a formal legal motion must be prepared and filed with the Court and prosecutor’s office. This motion must comply with all legal standards both procedurally and substantively. It must establish to the satisfaction of the Court that all of the various and essential criteria, required to be proven by the statute, have been definitively proven by the applicant. In sum, this is a legally complex litigation proceeding, which requires the experience and expertise of a competent and qualified attorney. The services of an attorney, such as those at our firm, greatly enhances an applicant’s chance of success in the sealing process.

A. You are eligible for sealing consideration after ten years has passed since the date of your criminal conviction.

​A. Yes. The new law takes effect on October 1, 2017. The process of determining eligibility and preparing the formal motion will take some time. It is best to start the process well before the ten year period is reached so that the motion can be filed as soon as you are eligible.

A. If sealing is granted, all “official records and papers relating to the arrests, prosecutions, and convictions, including all duplicates and copies thereof, on file with the division of criminal justice services or any court shall be sealed and not made available to any person or public or private agency.” N.Y. Crim. Proc. Law § 160.59(8). Moreover, The New York State Human Rights Law, N.Y. Exec. Law § 296(16) was amended concurrently with the enactment of the sealing authority, prohibiting public and private employers and occupational licensing agencies from asking about, or taking adverse action (i.e., denying employment or licensure) because of a sealed conviction.

A. A public criminal background check will clearly indicate: “NO PUBLIC RECORD”.

A. The New York State Human Rights Law, N.Y. Exec. Law § 296(16), prohibits public and private employers and occupational licensing agencies from asking about, or acting adversely (i.e., denying employment or licensure) because of any arrest that did not result in a conviction, or that terminated as a youthful offender adjudication; or that resulted in a sealed conviction, including violations, infractions, misdemeanors and felonies, sealed under the 2009 Drug Law Reform Act (for individuals who successfully completed a diversion program).

A. The public sealing of your records will not serve to restore those rights which were forfeited by virtue of a past conviction, particularly a felony conviction. However, separate relief and remedies to restore those rights exist under a different section of New York State law, specifically, Article 23 of the New York State Corrections Law. A successful application to the Court of Conviction for a Certificate of Relief from Civil Disabilities, if granted, will remove bars and disabilities, which resulted from a criminal conviction, such as the right to vote, the right hold public office and the right to obtain governmentally required licenses. ​