Expungement Petition - Preparation Worksheet - New Jersey

New Jersey Expungement Petition Preparation Worksheet

Use this worksheet to prepare an eCourts filing.

New Jersey Courts' eCourts Expungement System creates the petition and proposed
order from the information entered in the system. Do not file this worksheet as a
substitute for the system-generated documents. Filing through eCourts is free.

1. Route selection

Select the route only after reviewing the petitioner's complete record.

☐ Regular application involving a crime — N.J.S.A. 2C:52-2.

Section 2C:52-2(a) includes several possible configurations, including:

• one New Jersey crime;

• one New Jersey crime plus no more than three New Jersey disorderly-persons or
  petty-disorderly-persons offenses;

• multiple New Jersey convictions listed in a single judgment of conviction; or

• multiple New Jersey convictions that were interdependent or closely related and
  committed as part of a sequence of events within a comparatively short period.

Each configuration has additional limits concerning other and subsequent convictions.
Do not reduce the section to a simple "one indictable conviction" cap.

☐ Disorderly-persons-only application — N.J.S.A. 2C:52-3.

This route applies only when the person has no crime conviction in New Jersey or
another jurisdiction. Section 2C:52-3 permits specified configurations involving up
to five disorderly-persons and petty-disorderly-persons convictions, convictions
entered on the same day, or closely related convictions committed in a comparatively
short sequence. A person who also has a crime conviction must analyze N.J.S.A.
2C:52-2 instead.

☐ Clean-slate petition — N.J.S.A. 2C:52-5.3.

This route is for a person not otherwise eligible under another Chapter 52 route. It
may cover one or more New Jersey crimes, disorderly-persons offenses,
petty-disorderly-persons offenses, municipal violations, or a combination, unless a
conviction is barred by N.J.S.A. 2C:52-2(b) or (c). Confirm that petition filing
remains available under subsection (d) before selecting this route.

☐ Abuse-related application — N.J.S.A. 2C:52-5.5, effective November 1,
2026. Do not file under this route before its effective date. On and after that
date, use the court procedure then in effect and the evidence-and-burden worksheet
in Section 8 below.

2. Waiting-period worksheet

For a regular application under N.J.S.A. 2C:52-2, enter the latest of:

The ordinary period is five years from the latest controlling event. A court may
consider an application after at least four but less than five years only if the
additional requirements in N.J.S.A. 2C:52-2(a) are satisfied and compelling
circumstances exist.

For an application under N.J.S.A. 2C:52-3, use the same four-event calculation. The
ordinary period is five years. The discretionary route begins after at least three but
less than five years and has additional statutory requirements.

For a clean-slate petition under N.J.S.A. 2C:52-5.3, use the same four-event
calculation. The ordinary period is ten years.

An unpaid court-ordered financial assessment does not always end the analysis.
Sections 2C:52-2, 2C:52-3, and 2C:52-5.3 contain limited provisions for non-willful
nonpayment or delayed satisfaction, including possible entry of a civil judgment.
Record the facts and obtain legal review.

3. Complete case inventory

The eCourts guide warns that retrieved Judiciary cases may not be the petitioner's
full criminal history. Add missing, older, and out-of-state matters.

N.J.S.A. 2C:52-7 requires a verified petition to include the petitioner's date of
birth; arrest date; arrest and conviction statutes and offenses; original indictment,
summons, or complaint number; conviction or other disposition date; and the court's
disposition and punishment, if any.

4. Petitioner information

If the petitioner legally changed names, N.J.S.A. 2C:52-8(d) requires the date of the
name-change judgment, the previous legal name, and a copy of the order when
applicable.

5. Required verification facts

☐ The case inventory is complete and accurate.

☐ No crime, disorderly-persons, or petty-disorderly-persons charge is pending at
filing. N.J.S.A. 2C:52-8(a) requires this verification, and N.J.S.A. 2C:52-13
prevents the petition from being heard while such a charge is pending.

☐ For an application under N.J.S.A. 2C:52-2, the petitioner has disclosed whether
any state or federal court previously granted expungement, sealing, or similar relief
for a criminal conviction, as required by N.J.S.A. 2C:52-8(b).

☐ Any dismissal following supervisory treatment or another diversion program is
identified by original charge, court, and disposition date, as required by N.J.S.A.
2C:52-8(c).

☐ Every conviction has been screened against the current barred-crime and
controlled-dangerous-substance provisions in N.J.S.A. 2C:52-2(b) and (c).

☐ Any prior expungement, pending civil litigation concerning a record, and other
possible ground for denial under N.J.S.A. 2C:52-14 has been reviewed.

☐ If N.J.S.A. 2C:52-2(d) applies to a State-licensed physician or podiatrist, the
required State Board of Medical Examiners notice and court certification have been
prepared.

6. eCourts filing workflow

1. Sign in to the eCourts Expungement System and begin with a known criminal,
   municipal, or family case number.

2. Select the legally supported expungement type.

3. Review every retrieved case. Deselect a case only after confirming why it does
   not belong to the petitioner.

4. Add missing New Jersey cases and manually enter older or out-of-state matters.

5. Review arrest dates, charge data, dispositions, sentences, and the cases selected
   for the proposed order.

6. Complete the accuracy and no-pending-charge verification statements.

7. Review the notified parties, preview the system-generated petition and proposed
   order, and correct any omission before submission.

8. Submit and retain the auto-generated XP case number and the filed documents.

Under N.J.S.A. 2C:52-10 and 2C:52-10.1, the e-filing system electronically serves
the State Police Superintendent, Attorney General, and required county prosecutors.
Those agencies have 60 days after receipt to review the information and notify the
court of incomplete or inaccurate data or another basis for ineligibility. Add any
other notified party that eCourts identifies for the particular case.

7. Grounds requiring specific review

N.J.S.A. 2C:52-14 requires denial if a statutory prerequisite is missing. It also
addresses an objector's asserted need for the records, certain plea-bargained
dismissals, pending civil litigation concerning the record, and prior criminal
expungements subject to stated exceptions. The court may deny relief even without an
objection if the petitioner is not entitled to relief under N.J.S.A. 2C:52-12
and 2C:52-14.

8. Abuse-related route effective November 1, 2026

P.L.2025, c.329 creates N.J.S.A. 2C:52-5.5. It was approved January 20, 2026
and takes effect November 1, 2026. Before that date, it is not an available filing
route. On and after that date, confirm current Rules of Court and eCourts support.

The statute permits a petition in the Superior Court in the county where the person
resides or a county where one or more convictions were adjudged. It excludes murder
and a crime enumerated in N.J.S.A. 2C:7-2(b). It can reach convictions, findings of
guilt, and juvenile adjudications. The petitioner must show that:

1. the petitioner was a victim of domestic violence as defined in N.J.S.A.
   2C:25-19(a), or was otherwise subjected to substantial physical, sexual, or
   psychological abuse; and

2. the domestic violence or abuse was a contributing factor to the conviction or
   other disposition for which relief is sought.

The court may deny relief if it finds that expungement is not in the interest of
justice or that the petitioner was the primary aggressor. The route may be used only
once, and the court applies a preponderance-of-the-evidence standard. The statute
allows filing immediately after the latest of the most recent conviction, payment of
any court-ordered financial assessment, satisfactory completion of probation or
parole, or release from incarceration.

Evidence worksheet

The statute directs the court to consider all relevant circumstances and identifies
possible sources including court, social-services, presentence, hospital, criminal,
domestic-violence, protective-order, corrections, provider-consultation, professional,
and sworn-witness records. It does not make every listed item mandatory in every case.

Sources and References

• New Jersey Legislature — current unannotated statutes gateway
• New Jersey Courts — Expunge Records
• New Jersey Courts — eCourts Expungement System User Guide
• P.L.2025, c.329 — N.J.S.A. 2C:52-5.5, effective November 1, 2026