A criminal conviction, even for a minor crime, can have a major impact on your life. The conviction will show up on criminal background checks, keep you from getting a job, make it difficult to find housing, and even prevent you from obtaining certain types of professional licenses. In some cases, however, it may be possible to have your criminal record sealed or expunged.

What Are Expungements?

Expungement is the legal process in which the record of a criminal conviction is removed from official court records. If an expungement is granted, a conviction will no longer appear on criminal background checks. And, most of the time, the person previously convicted will be able to tell future employers or financial institutions that he or she does not have any criminal convictions on employment and housing forms.