How to Remove Court Records From Google

To remove court records from Google, you usually have to change the source first. Google generally won’t remove accurate public records, especially from government sites, so the durable fix is getting the record expunged or sealed if you qualify, then asking the court website and each third-party record site to take the case down, and finally using Google’s Refresh Outdated Content tool so the old results drop out. If the record can’t be sealed, opting out of people-search sites and building stronger results for your name are the realistic fallbacks.

That order matters. Asking Google first, while the record is still live on the court’s website, almost always ends in a denial.

Where court records show up in Google

A court case can appear in search results in several places, and each has a different owner and a different route.

Source	Examples	How to get it changed
Official court or county websites	State or county case search portals, court calendars, published opinions	Expungement or sealing; the court or clerk updates its own records
Third-party record aggregators	Sites that copy dockets, case filings or opinions and make them searchable by name	Removal request to the site, strongest with a sealing or expungement order
People-search and background sites	Data brokers that list “criminal records” or “court records” under your name	Each site’s opt-out process
News coverage	Local news stories about the case or the arrest	Request an update or anonymization from the editor
Mugshot sites	Booking photo sites tied to the same case	See our guide on removing a mugshot from the internet

Start by searching your full name, your name with your city, and your name with words like “court,” “case” or “lawsuit.” Record every URL, what it shows, and the date you found it.

Why Google usually won’t remove a court record

Google treats public records as information that often has public value. Its Search Help pages explain that it won’t remove information that is valuable to the public, and that it defers strongly to a government’s decision to publish information on a government site. If a court still chooses to publish a case, Google takes that as a sign the public interest in it remains.

Google’s personal information policies do cover specific items such as government ID numbers, bank account details, and personal contact details like your phone number or home address. If a record page shows those, you may be able to get that result removed, or have it stop appearing for searches of your name. Being named in a lawsuit or a criminal case, on its own, isn’t covered.

There is one narrow exception worth knowing about. Google has a removal policy for content about you on sites with exploitative removal practices, meaning sites that demand payment to take content down. If a record site asks you to pay for removal, report it under that policy, as our mugshot guide explains.

Expungement and sealing: the durable fix

Expungement or sealing changes the record itself, which changes what everyone else is willing to do. Depending on your state, the type of case and how it ended, a court may be able to seal or expunge the record, especially when charges were dismissed, you were acquitted, or you completed a diversion program or sentence and waited the required period. Our guides to misdemeanor expungement and DUI expungement cover two of the most common cases.

The rules vary a great deal between states: what qualifies, how long you have to wait, whether civil cases such as evictions can be sealed, and what the order actually requires. Some states have introduced automatic or simplified sealing for certain records. Talk to a lawyer in your state, or a legal aid organization if cost is a concern, before assuming you do or don’t qualify.

When you get an order, request certified copies from the clerk. You will send copies to record sites, and sometimes to publishers, so it’s worth having several.

Step by step: after the record is sealed or expunged

1. Check the official source. Search the court’s case portal for your name and case number. Sealed cases typically stop appearing, but confirm it. If the case still shows, contact the clerk with a copy of the order.
2. Contact each record aggregator. Look for a removal, privacy or contact page. Send a short request with the URL, your case number and a copy of the order. Redact anything the site doesn’t need, such as your date of birth, if the order includes it.
3. Opt out of people-search sites. Many list court records alongside addresses and relatives. Most have a free opt-out form, and each site must be handled separately.
4. Ask publishers to update news stories. Editors are far more open to adding an update or removing a name when a court has sealed the case. Our guide on how to remove a news article from Google covers how to ask.
5. Refresh Google. Once a page has been removed or changed, use Google’s Refresh Outdated Content tool with that URL. Our guide on removing outdated content from Google explains how it works and why requests get denied.
6. Check again in a few months. Record sites sometimes re-import data, and new aggregators appear. Keep your order handy.

Hello, your page at [URL] displays a court case under my name, [case number]. On [date], the [court name] ordered this record sealed. A copy of the order is attached. Please remove the page, and any other pages on your site showing this case, and confirm when it’s done. Thank you.

If the record can’t be sealed

Many records aren’t eligible for sealing, at least not yet. Civil judgments, some convictions, and cases that ended recently often stay public. You still have options:

• Ask aggregators anyway. Some third-party sites remove or de-index records on request even without an order, especially older or dismissed cases. Others won’t. It costs nothing to ask.
• Use Google’s personal information tools for pages that show your phone number, home address or ID numbers alongside the case.
• Opt out of people-search sites. This removes one of the most common places court records appear next to your name.
• Revisit eligibility. Waiting periods end and state laws change. A case that didn’t qualify five years ago may qualify now.
• Build stronger results. Accurate, current pages about you, such as a professional profile, a personal site or published work, can push record pages lower for searches of your name. Our search result suppression service does this when removal isn’t available.

A worked example

This is an illustrative scenario, not a real case.

A nurse finds that searching her name returns a county case portal page and two record aggregator pages showing a misdemeanor charge from eight years ago. The charge was dismissed after she completed a diversion program. A people-search site also lists “criminal record found” next to her current address.

1. She speaks to a legal aid clinic, which confirms the dismissed case is likely eligible for sealing in her state and helps her file.
2. Several months later the court grants the order. She gets certified copies.
3. The county portal stops showing the case. She checks twice to confirm.
4. She emails both aggregators with the order. One removes the page within a week. The other requires a form and removes the page after a follow-up.
5. She opts out of the people-search site.
6. For each removed page still showing in Google, she submits the URL to the Refresh Outdated Content tool.

Timing like this varies. Courts, record sites and Google each move at their own pace, and the outcome depends on state law and each site’s policy.

Common mistakes

• Asking Google to remove a live government page. It will almost always be denied. Change the source first.
• Paying a site to remove a record. Pay-to-remove sites often have sister sites, and Google has a policy against them. Report them instead.
• Assuming a sealing order cleans up the internet. It doesn’t. You still have to contact each private site.
• Using the Refresh tool too early. If the page still shows your name, Google will see nothing has changed.
• Skipping the lawyer. Sealing and expungement rules are specific to each state, and a small mistake in the petition can mean starting again.

If you’d rather have someone handle the site-by-site requests and follow-ups, our content removal service works from your court documents to contact each site and track the results.

Frequently asked questions

Can Google remove a court record from search results?

Generally not while the record is still published. Google defers strongly to government sites and won’t remove information it considers valuable to the public. Once the source page is removed or changed, the Refresh Outdated Content tool can update the result. Specific personal details, like your ID numbers or home address, may be removable under Google’s personal information policies.

Does expungement remove my record from the internet?

Not automatically. It changes the official record, and courts usually stop showing sealed cases, but private sites that copied the record need to be asked individually. The order makes those requests much more likely to succeed.

Are federal court records on Google?

Federal court records are held in PACER, which requires an account, so docket pages there aren’t typically what ranks. Published opinions and third-party sites that copy federal filings can appear in search results, and they are handled like any other record site.

Can I get a civil lawsuit removed from Google?

It depends on your state and the type of case. Some civil records, such as certain eviction cases, can be sealed in some states. Otherwise, focus on third-party sites that republish the case and on building stronger search results for your name.