I am often asked by people with New York criminal convictions from their distant past if they can expunge their records.  New York is one of a handful of states where a criminal conviction — no matter how ancient or petty — cannot be expunged from one’s record, under any circumstances.

Requests to expunge usually come years after a case is over, and one is faced with an application for employment, graduate school, student loan, or similar situation they never thought would be impacted by their case that may not have been properly handled or taken seriously.  Often, the collateral consequences of criminal charges in New York – which can be severe and far-reaching — remain unrealized until several years later, at which point it is too late to do anything about them.  This law makes clear how important it can be to hire an experienced lawyer to handle your criminal case.