Keep the report you received
Save the full report, company name, date and the application context. Identify whether the problem is an outdated outcome, a different person's case or a record the order was intended to cover.
Trace the information
Check the case number and source listed on the report. Obtain the order and any updated official record. A vague statement that the case was cleared may not show where an update failed.
Use the appropriate correction process
Follow the reporting company's dispute instructions and any separate court or agency correction process. Keep copies of submissions and responses. Get legal help if an immediate employment or housing issue makes timing important.
A way to organize your review
Follow the record to its source
Read the diagram as text
- Court record
- Read the disposition and any later court order.
- Agency record
- Identify the agency that maintains the record.
- Background report
- Read the actual report and identify its provider.
- Discrepancy
- Compare the entries and keep evidence of any difference.
Common question
Should I apply for relief again if a report is wrong?
First identify the error and confirm the existing order. A reporting problem may call for a dispute or record update rather than another relief application.
Official resources
Consult the issuing authority for current forms and local procedure.
- California Courts — Record-cleaning indexwww.selfhelp.courts.ca.gov
- California Courts — Felony convictions and Proposition 47www.selfhelp.courts.ca.gov
- California Penal Code section 17leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
- Utah Courts conviction reduction guidancewww.utcourts.gov
- Utah Courts adult expungement guidancewww.utcourts.gov
- Additional official guidancefiles.consumerfinance.gov