Seal Your Record

Anytime someone is arrested or charged in Tampa or anywhere else in Florida for committing a criminal act, be it as simple as a second degree misdemeanor or as serious as a capital felony, a public record will be made and maintained. For many people who have a criminal history that fact will never affect their job prospects, application for a loan or housing needs. For those that are affected by a criminal history it can be one of the most frustrating and damaging things they have ever dealt with. Our Tampa criminal attorneys talk to people on a weekly basis that are prevented from getting a job or promotion because of a prior battery or petty theft committed 20 years ago. Unfortunately for them they have made the mistake of promptly resolving their case and an unreasonable prosecutor or Judge insisted on them being formally convicted of their crime.

Nothing is more important in any plea than maintaining withhold of adjudication. If this is done, for most crimes the record of the case can later be sealed to prevent potential employers from viewing your past allegations.

Each Tampa record sealing attorney in our office is methodical in their analysis of a potential clients history to ensure that a record sealing is possible. Pursuant to Florida Statute 943.059 and individual is eligible to have their record sealed if they have a withhold of adjudication on the crime they wish to seal and have no prior adjudications of guilt. They must also have never had a prior seal or expungement in Florida or any other State and their crime can not be one expressly prohibited from Seal under 943.059.

Because there are several steps that must be taken in the process, we recommend hiring an experienced Tampa criminal lawyer to help you through the process. The steps to obtaining a record sealing are as follows:

1. Complete the application accurately and sign it in front of a notary public.
2. Obtain and include a certified disposition for the case.
3. Get fingerprinted on an FBI card or the card included in the seal packet by an accredited law enforcement agency. Ensure that all information is filled out on the form correctly.
4. Include a $75 money order with the packet.

Once all the application information is submitted to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement we wait. Eventually the FDLE will return to our office a certificate of eligibility notifying the Court that you are approved to have your record sealed. Our Tampa record sealing attorneys will file a petition for seal with the applicable court and upon the Court granting our petition will command all agencies involved in your arrest or case process to seal your record. After 10 years of your record being sealed we can then go through a similar process to have your record expunged.

While it’s imperative to ensure you are not formally convicted of any crime, it is equally as important to process your record sealing correctly. A sealed record is very often the difference between being hired for your dream job and having your resume tossed in the garbage. Our record sealing lawyers are available to help at 813-444-7435.