Data removal. Updated 2026-09-13. About 5 minutes to read.
Remove the broker copies first because that is quick, then ask the court itself about sealing, expungement or redaction, which is the only thing that limits the original record.
Court records are public in the US, Australia, the UK and Canada because of a principle called open justice: courts work in public so they can be scrutinised. That includes civil cases, divorces in many US states, evictions, small claims, traffic matters and criminal cases, even ones that ended in an acquittal or a dismissal.
You cannot opt out of a court index the way you opt out of a people-search site. What you can do depends on the case and where it was heard. The main tools are sealing or expungement, redaction of personal identifiers, spent conviction schemes, and removing the copies that data brokers republish. This guide shows which applies to you and what each one actually achieves.
In the US, federal court records are available through PACER, which charges US$0.10 per page with a US$3 cap per document, and waives fees for anyone who uses less than US$30 in a quarter. Most state courts run their own online case search. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 5.2 requires filings to show only the last four digits of a Social Security or financial account number, the year of birth rather than the full date, and a minor's initials. Older filings made before these rules, and many state filings, can contain more.
Background check and people-search companies collect court data in bulk, either by buying it from courts and data suppliers or by copying it from online portals. They match it to people by name and date of birth, which is how a stranger's conviction can end up on the wrong person's profile. Mugshot sites republish booking photos from police websites, often long after charges were dropped.
Removing yourself from a broker does not touch the court's record, but it does remove the easiest way for someone to find it by searching your name. Start there, because it is fast and free.
Be wary of websites that charge to remove your court record or mugshot. Only a court can seal or expunge a record, and paying one site to take down a photo does nothing about the copies on others.
Australian court lists and many judgments are published, and some are reproduced on legal databases. Courts can make suppression or non-publication orders in particular cases, which you or your lawyer apply for during proceedings.
Under the Commonwealth spent convictions scheme, a conviction for a less serious offence becomes spent after 10 years, or 5 years for a juvenile, if the sentence was no more than 30 months in prison and you have not reoffended. You then generally do not have to disclose it, and it must not be used or disclosed without authority. States and territories run their own schemes. The OAIC handles complaints about misuse of spent Commonwealth convictions.
In England and Wales, a county court judgment for debt stays on the public Register of Judgments, Orders and Fines for six years. If you pay in full within one month of the judgment, you can ask the court to remove it, using form N443 to apply for a certificate of cancellation. Paid later, it is marked as satisfied but stays for the six years. Under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, most convictions become spent after a set rehabilitation period, after which you do not need to disclose them for most jobs, insurance and housing.
In Canada, a record suspension from the Parole Board of Canada separates a criminal record from other records in national police systems. You can apply five years after completing a sentence for a summary offence, or ten years for an indictable offence. The application fee is C$50, and courts can separately impose publication bans in some cases.
You can remove copies on people-search and background sites through their opt-outs, and Google may drop a broker page once it is gone. The court's own record stays public unless a court seals or expunges it, or the law makes it confidential.
Generally not when the page is on a court or government website. Google's Results about you tool excludes government sites. It can help with broker pages that show your phone number, address or email next to the record.
It should not appear on the court's public system, but a background check company that copied the record earlier may still hold it. Send them a copy of the sealing order and ask them to delete the entry.
It depends on where you are. In many US states divorce case files are public, with some documents kept confidential. In Australia and the UK, family court proceedings have strong restrictions on publishing identifying details.