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The Court Information Form
The Court Information form is one of the trickiest forms for most people applying for a Record Suspension. Dealing with courts is not easy, so you should get started on this application as soon as possible.
If you are doing your Record Suspension application through AllCleared, we will get your court information on your behalf. If you are doing it yourself, you will need to get the court information form from the Parole Board of Canada or download it below. Fill out the first six questions and then take or deliver it to the courthouse.
Before you can approach each court, you need to get fingerprints and a copy of your Certified Criminal Record from the RCMP.
You must get court information for each of your convictions. You may be convicted of multiple offences stemming from the same incident or you may have been involved in more than one incident. Sometimes you will have been convicted in more than one court, in which case, you will need to approach each court individually.
If you are going to submit a request to more than one courthouse, you will need to make copies of your criminal record.
Check the Returned Information
Verify the information that comes back. You are responsible for ensuring that the court has provided all the information you need for your application. If you are doing your application through AllCleared, we will do this for you. You must ensure that the court has included:
Proof of fine, restitution and other payments and the date of your final payment: You cannot apply for a Record Suspension unless you have paid all your fines and restitution. Additionally, the wait period for a Record Suspension does not begin until you have paid all your fines and completed other sentences such as jail or probation. Thus, the last date of payment is very important to the Parole Board of Canada.
Method of Trial: In Canada, most criminal offences are considered hybrid. This means that they can be tried as either Summary or Indictable. Your court documents should tell you the method of trial. This is important because it affects the wait period before you can apply for your Record Suspension. The wait periods are:
- Summary: 5 years
- Indictable: 10 years
If the court cannot provide you with this information, for example, it was never recorded, or the documents have been lost or destroyed, your application will be treated as indictable and you will need to wait 10 years.
The Parole Board also uses this information to determine its processing time. A Summary offence takes six months to process and an indictable offence takes 10 years.
Sometimes people get their court documents back and are disappointed to learn that they were tried under the indictable standard. Thus, they have to put their applications on hold for five years. Unfortunately, if you don’t have your court documents, the only way to find this information out is to get your court information.
Signed and sealed: Make sure the court has signed, sealed and dated it. If you plan on travelling to another country, you may want to ask for an extra copy. Most countries do not recognize Canadian pardons and will want to do their own assessment of your criminal record and charges. Court information is a required document in the US Entry Waiver application.
Check for a match: Your criminal record must match the information on the court records. If not, you need to ask for proof of conviction.
Can You Get Your Court Information Faster?
Courts in Canada are extremely busy places. Your request for court documents may come back quickly, or it could take months. Sometimes you have to follow up and remind them. If you do your Record Suspension with AllCleared, we will follow up on your behalf. We also have estimated wait times for each court.
Another service that we offer our expedited clients is court requests through our police partner. Most individuals have to wait for the Certified Criminal Record to arrive before they can request their court information. According to current time frames on the RCMP’s website, this can take four months. This is frustrating for many because they can’t make any progress on their application during this time.
However, if you select expedited service, our police partner will get the court documents while you are waiting for your Certified Criminal Record. This can save you up to four months on compiling your application. AllCleared is the only Record Suspension service provider offering this four-months-faster service.
Getting a Record Suspension is a complex process. If you would like a free consultation give us a call at 1-866-972-7366 or check your eligibility here.
