Several Good Reasons for Obtaining Court Records
There are many good reasons for one to obtain free court records. These records are a means to the public, allowing them to monitor the actions and accuracy of court in order. Over the last few decades freedom of information has helped to keep the US democracy intact. By having access to public records, public can keep track of the federal and local government actions.
Personal safety as well as business safety, is important and people have the right to know who they are employing, and who their neighbor’s are and so on. By being able to access free court records; you can now check for possible criminal records or any other records a prospective neighbor, business partner or even a boyfriend has. However, there are conflicting interests such as the public has rights to records versus the public have a right to privacy.
There are several ways in which you are able to access records. You can visit the courthouses, pay an agency to obtain the records or go online and search for the records yourself. By visiting these various websites you will obtain access to the court archives. Unfortunately there is no single database which means you will have to do an extensive search yourself.
However, court records are not that easy to find, and when you do find what you are looking for the information may be less informative that you expected. In order to get access to the information you need you will have to have the full name, social security number or driving license and maybe a photo. Why information is limited online is due to the fact that people accessing these records could in turn commit crimes as well as fraudulent actions in another person’s name.
There are also many other obstacles that could occur when publishing court records such as denying a person mortgage or loan or even employment due to minor offenses, by revealing the persons personal data and the risk of technical errors. Due to these facts mentioned the courts within the USA have ruled to seal court information. These databases require you to search by case number and not the person’s name.
Only in specified cases can one make an application to the court in order to obtain personal data. Usually only lawyers, organizations and businesses have access to these court records. Verification is needed in such an instance as well as a valid reason to access such information.
