<P> In the common law legal system , an expungement proceeding is a type of lawsuit in which a first time offender of a prior criminal conviction seeks that the records of that earlier process be sealed , making the records unavailable through the state or Federal repositories . If successful , the records are said to be `` expunged '' . Black 's Law Dictionary defines `` expungement of record '' as the `` Process by which record of criminal conviction is destroyed or sealed from the state or Federal repository . '' While expungement deals with an underlying criminal record , it is a civil action in which the subject is the petitioner or plaintiff asking a court to declare that the records be expunged . </P>
<P> In the common law legal system , an expungement proceeding is a type of lawsuit in which a first time offender of a prior criminal conviction seeks that the records of that earlier process be sealed , making the records unavailable through the state or Federal repositories . If successful , the records are said to be `` expunged '' . Black 's Law Dictionary defines `` expungement of record '' as the `` Process by which record of criminal conviction is destroyed or sealed from the state or Federal repository . '' While expungement deals with an underlying criminal record , it is a civil action in which the subject is the petitioner or plaintiff asking a court to declare that the records be expunged . </P>
what does it mean to get something expunged
what does it mean to get something expunged
a first time offender of a prior criminal conviction seeks that the records of that earlier process be sealed , making the records unavailable through the state or Federal repositories
a first time offender of a prior criminal conviction seeks that the records of that earlier process be sealed , making the records unavailable through the state or Federal repositories