If you are searching for best NJ expungement lawyer, you might be wondering what exactly it is you should be looking for.  Expungement attorneys are trained in expungement law and know that getting your record expunged is important and can have a lifelong effect on you.  Expungement can be beneficial for both your professional and personal life, and a lawyer with experience in expungement cases can help you navigate the criteria and process for applying.  A NJ expungement lawyer can also handle objections from the county prosecutor and appear in court on your behalf to answer questions from the judge.

Retaining the right NJ expungement lawyer can be the difference between success and failure.  It can also make a major difference with respect to the time frame it takes the lawyer to get the job done on your behalf.  Thus, in order to make sure that your expungement is done properly and in a timely manner, it is vital that you retain a good NJ expungement lawyer.

Interview Prospective Lawyers

After obtaining the names of several good prospects, the next step is to talk to each NJ expungement lawyer personally. Most expungement lawyers offer free telephone consultations so that you can make an informed decision.  This consultation is your opportunity to interview the prospective lawyer.  When it comes to finding the best NJ expungement lawyer, most people are interested in an attorney who is: 1) experienced; 2) responsive; 3) affordable; and 4) personable.

1.  Experience

While it may seem like expungement is a relatively simple area of law, this is not the case.  Expungement law in New Jersey is actually a highly technical and complex area of law.  Moreover, because expungement laws change frequently you will want to ensure that your expungement lawyer’s knowledge base is up to date.

To figure out whether a NJ expungement lawyer is the right fit for you in terms of experience, you can ask the attorney questions such as:

• How long have you been practicing expungements?
• How many expungements per year do you complete?
• Who drafts your expungement petitions, an attorney or staff member?
• Have you ever been involved in an expungement case of legal significance?

You can also test a particular lawyer’s knowledge of expungement law.  For example, an experienced NJ expungement lawyer should be able to answer the following questions with ease:

Q.  If someone has a felony conviction, how many disorderly persons offenses (or misdemeanors) would be eligible for expungement?

A.  Three.

Q.  How many disorderly persons offenses (or misdemeanors) would one be eligible to expunge if they did not have a felony conviction?

A.  Five.

Perhaps most importantly, you should ensure that your expungement lawyer verifies, post expungement, that the expunged records have been properly removed from the state/governmental databases and that private online, background check companies have been notified of the expungement.  You should also ensure that your expungement lawyer obtains and keeps non-certified copies of the underlying court records on your behalf, should you ever need them, since it will be nearly impossible to obtain them once your record has been expunged.

2.  Responsiveness

You should also ask prospective lawyers how you will be able to contact them and how long it typically takes them to return client communications.  You should not assume that just because a lawyer seems friendly during the initial consultation that you can overlook this step.

This is especially true if time is of the essence with respect to your expungement.  The attention an expungement lawyer gives to you will probably be similar to the level of attention they would be giving your expungement.  If a lawyer is too busy to return your calls or emails, your expungement might not be handled in an expedited manner either.

Unfortunately, the complaint logs of lawyer regulatory organizations indicate that many attorneys are terrible at communicating with clients. If every time you have a question about the status of your expungement there is a delay of several days before you hear back from the attorney, you will quickly become frustrated.

Thus, before hiring a NJ expungement lawyer, you might want to consider calling or emailing that lawyer a couple of times in order to see how long they take to get back to you.  If a particular attorney seems to be very busy and does not take the time to make you a priority, it is probably a good indicator that they might not be a good fit for you.

3.  Affordability

For most people, their ability to afford a particular lawyer’s services plays a key role.  In this regard, you will want to make sure you understand how the lawyer charges for their services.  Most NJ expungement lawyers will handle your matter on a flat-fee basis.  An attorney charging a flat fee will charge one fee for handling your expungement, regardless of how many hours the matter takes.  Sometimes this fee must be paid in full upfront, depending on the lawyer.

If a NJ expungement lawyer quotes you a flat fee, however, you will want to inquire as to whether that fee is all inclusive or whether you can expect any additional fees or expenses.  Some expungement lawyers will charge a lower rate flat fee, but then bill you separately for court filing fees, mailing expenses, etc.  These costs can quickly add up so be sure to find out during your initial consultation exactly how the particular attorney will be billing you.

4.  Location 

If you are trying to expunge a New Jersey offense why would you hire a law firm located outside of New Jersey to represent you?  Recently, the expungement lawyers at Katherine O’Brien Law have noticed that some larger, “national” law firms located outside of New Jersey have been targeting New Jersey expungement clients.  There are several reasons why you should avoid these firms.  Besides supporting your local economy by hiring a local New Jersey law firm to process your expungement, these outside law firms do not offer the best and most qualified representation as they are not from New Jersey.  Don’t make the mistake of hiring a law firm in California to represent you on your New Jersey expungement.

5.  Personality 

Finally, in order to ensure that you have found the best NJ expungement lawyer, you should pay attention to the personal chemistry between you and the prospective lawyers. Regardless of how experienced and well-recommended an attorney is, if you do not feel comfortable with that person during your initial consultation, you may never achieve an ideal lawyer-client relationship. Trust your instincts and seek a lawyer whose personality is compatible with your own.

Further Resources

For additional recommendations on choosing and working with a lawyer, see Nolo’s guide on How to Find an Excellent Lawyer.

Affordable, Experienced NJ Expungement Lawyer

If you have questions on how to find the best NJ expungement lawyer for your case, contact Katherine O’Brien Law today for a free consultation.  Katherine O’Brien is an experienced NJ expungement lawyer who will handle your expungement in a prompt and timely manner.  We also provide affordable expungements.  Our flat-rate, all-inclusive fee to handle a basic expungement is only $895.00.  In addition, we offer flexible payment plans and can start working on your expungement today for only $350.00 down.  Call us at 856-832-2482 or fill out our Expungement Interview Form to schedule your consultation.

Our Guaranteed Expungement Service* includes all of the following:

When we handle your expungement, our service includes not only obtaining the actual court order expunging/sealing your records but we will also:

1. Guaranteed Expungement* or Your Money Back! We are so confident in our services that we will guarantee expungement or we will refund our legal fee in full.
2. Obtain non-certified dispositions for your records.  Before expunging/sealing your record, you should obtain your case dispositions for your files since, once the records are ordered expunged/sealed, you will likely not be able to obtain them. Should you ever be required to disclose or need access to your expunged/sealed records for any reason, it will be tough, if not impossible, to obtain them once your cases have been expunged/sealed. As part of our representation, we will obtain non-certified case dispositions on your behalf. Moreover, should you require certified case dispositions (usually required for immigration proceedings), we can also obtain those on your behalf for an additional fee.
3. Ensure that your expunged/sealed records are removed from private databases. As part of our representation of you, we will not only obtain an order expunging/sealing your records and ensure that your records are removed from the applicable state agencies’ databases, but we will go the extra mile by providing – at no additional cost – the invaluable service of making sure that the various online, private background check databases (such as Checkr, Truthfinder, Sterling, etc.) have removed your expunged records from their databases. Other law firms either do not offer this service at all or charge upwards of $200 to $400 additional for this service. At Katherine O’Brien Law, when we say that we will handle your expungement/sealing from start to finish for a flat fee price, we mean it, and we go above and beyond for our clients to ensure their expunged records are removed for good from all possible sources.
4. Ensure that your expunged records are removed from government databases. After the court orders your expungement and the expungement order is served on the applicable government agencies, such as the police department that arrested you, the applicable court, the probation office, the county prosecutor, etc., the expungement lawyers at Katherine O’Brien Law will go above and beyond by confirming that your records were actually removed from the applicable databases. You would not believe how frequently we have found the state agencies to have failed to properly update their databases – despite proper service of the expungement order by our office.  Shockingly, we have found that approximately one-third of the time, government agencies have failed to remove expunged records from these databases properly.  We cannot stress how important it is to verify, post-expungement, that the state agencies, such as the municipal courts, have removed your records per the expungement order.
5. Offer free lifetime record removal services. Finally,  despite our diligent and proper handling of your case and our dedication to ensuring that your records have been appropriately removed from the state and private databases, with the advent of the internet and information sharing, it is possible that an Internet background check company might improperly reveal your expunged record. Should this happen to you, we offer a free lifetime record removal service to our expungement/sealing clients. We will immediately reach out to the relevant background check company on your behalf and demand that they remove your expunged records from their system and correct any reports issued on your behalf. Other law firms provide you with a form letter and instructions on how to do this yourself.

*The use of the word “guaranteed” in attorney advertisements specifically refers to a refund policy and does not imply a guarantee of any particular outcome in your legal case. Legal cases are inherently unpredictable, and the result of any legal matter cannot be assured. Katherine O’Brien Law guarantees that you will receive a full refund of our legal fee if you do not obtain the desired outcome. This guarantee applies solely to the refund and not to the success or outcome of your case. Please also be advised that if expungement was denied for your failure to disclose your entire criminal record, the guarantee does not apply. For more information and to discuss your specific legal situation, please consult with one of our experienced attorneys.