Shielding or Sealing a Case Record
Topics on this page:
- Court Records
- Motion to Seal or Otherwise Limit Inspection of a Case Record
- Maryland Second Chance Act
Court Records
Generally speaking, Maryland court records and cases are open to the public. You can visit a Maryland court to look at court records or go online to see information about a case through the Maryland Judiciary Case Search.
Read the Rule: Md. Rule 16-903
However, you can ask a Maryland court to keep the public from seeing records in your case. There are two ways to do this:
- Motion to Seal or Otherwise Limit Inspection of a Case Record
- Petition for Shielding Under the Maryland Second Chance Act
A successful Petition for Shielding or a Motion to Seal offer ways to keep the public from seeing your court records. If you want more information about shielding or sealing records, please visit the Maryland Judiciary's website.
Some case records do not require these motions/petitions because the records are not public. For example, in criminal cases, the victim’s contact information is automatically shielded. Check the Maryland Rules for more information on automatically shielded civil and criminal records.
There are some specific laws about shielding case records in some types of cases:
- Failure to pay rent: Some failure to pay rent cases must be shielded by the court and others may be shielded. Learn more in the article on Failure to Pay Rent.
- Peace and Protective orders: In some situations, either the Petitioner or the Respondent can ask the court to shield the records related to a peace or protective order. Learn more about shielding peace and protective orders.
- Expungement: Asking the court to shield or seal your court records is not the same thing as expungement. Learn more about expungements.
Case Search from the Maryland Courts
Motion to Seal or Otherwise Limit Inspection of a Case Record
This motion asks the court to seal a case record or to limit inspection of a portion of the record. Case records include court papers, orders, notices, and other records on a case. The motion can be used more than once for criminal, civil, and traffic cases. The standard form (form CC-DC-053) is available on the Maryland Courts website. To request to shield a Failure to Pay Rent case filed during the COVID-19 pandemic (March 5, 2020 - January 1, 2022), use form DC-CV-116.
A party to a case, which includes the plaintiff, defendant, and a permitted intervening party, may ask the court to seal or otherwise limit inspection of a case record. A person who is the subject of, or specifically identified in, a case record may also make this request.
When requesting to limit inspection of a case record, you must give a special and compelling reason why the public should not be able to see the case.
Read the Rules: Md. Rules Title 16, Chapter 900
Process
Filing and Notification
- Complete a Petition to Seal or Otherwise Limit Inspection of a Case Record (form CC-DC-053).
- File the petition by mail or in person with the District or Circuit Court that heard the case.
- Notify all parties and others named in the case by sending them all the documents you filed with the court.
When the motion to seal is filed, the records you are requesting to be sealed are automatically sealed for up to 5 business days. After this time, the court may issue a temporary order to shield the record before a hearing and final decision. If the court does not issue a temporary order to seal, the records become visible until the court rules on the motion to seal.
Response and Court Review
After your petition has been filed, all parties and any person named in the case can submit a response. The timeframe for filing a response to the motion varies based on the court in which the petition is filed. In District Court, the party has 10 days to respond. In Circuit Court, the party has 15 days to respond.
If a party objects to the petition, the court will hold a hearing before making a decision. The court has 30 days after the hearing is held to issue a decision.
Court Decision
A judge will review the petition and any responses. The judge with then do one of the following:
- Schedule a Hearing: If the judge determines that the petition requires more consideration, or if an objection to has been filed, the court will schedule a hearing.
- Deny the Petition: If the judge determines that they cannot grant the petition, they will deny the petition. If the court denies the motion, the public will be able to see the record.
- Grant the Petition: If the judge grants the petition, the court may:
- Seal the Record: If the court seals the record, the whole case record cannot be opened without the judge’s permission.
- Limit Inspection of the Record: If the court limits inspection, the court will clearly state what record may not be viewed by the public, and for how long.
Access to a Sealed Record - The public can ask for permission to see a sealed case record. Forms are available on the Maryland Courts website.
Read the Rules: Md. Rule 16-912; 2-311; 3-311
Petition for Shielding under the Maryland Second Chance Act
This is a one-time request to remove court and police records about 12 eligible convictions. The eligible crimes are:
- Disorderly Conduct under § 10-201(c)(2) of the Criminal Law Article;
- Disturbing the Peace under § 10-201(c)(4) of the Criminal Law Article;
- Failure to Obey a Reasonable and Lawful Order under § 10-201(c)(3) of the Criminal Law Article;
- Malicious Destruction of Property in the Lesser Degree under § 6-301 of the Criminal Law Article;
- Trespass on Posted Property under § 6-402 of the Criminal Law Article;
- Possessing or Administering a Controlled Dangerous Substance under § 5-601 of the Criminal Law Article;
- Possessing of Administering a Non-controlled Dangerous Substance under § 5-618(a) of the Criminal Law Article;
- Use of or Possession with Intent to Use Drug Paraphernalia under § 5-619(c)(1) of the Criminal Law Article;
- Driving without a License under § 16-101 of the Transportation Article;
- Driving While Privilege is Canceled, Suspended, Refused, or Revoked under § 16-303 of the Transportation Article;
- Driving While Uninsured under § 17-107 of the Transportation Article; or
- A Prostitution Offense under § 11-306(a)(1) of the Criminal Law Article if the conviction is for prostitution and not assignation.
You file this petition in either District Court or Circuit Court. You must have been convicted of one of 12 specific convictions in those courts. The petition can include multiples of the 12 convictions. The petition can only be filed in one Maryland county and only once in your lifetime.
If you have two or more convictions that came from the same incident, transaction, or set of facts, then eligibility for shielding those convictions is “all or nothing.” If any of those convictions is not eligible for shielding, then none of those convictions is eligible.
Read the Law: Md. Code, Criminal Procedure Title 10, Subtitle 3