How to remove court records from Google
Court records are public by default. The realistic levers are sealing, the aggregator layer, and what ranks instead.
Court records are presumptively public and search engines will not remove them on request. The available routes are sealing or restricting access through the court, opting out of the commercial aggregators that republish filings, and suppression. Which of these applies depends on the case type and the state, and sealing is granted narrowly.
Sealing is the only route to the source
Courts can seal or restrict records, but the presumption of public access is strong and motions to seal are granted in defined circumstances: minors, certain family matters, sensitive personal or medical information, and cases where a specific statute applies.
A general wish for privacy is not a ground. Where sealing is available it is the most durable fix, because it addresses the source rather than the copies.
The aggregator layer is where most visibility lives
Most people find court records not on the court's own site but on commercial aggregators that scrape and republish filings, often with better search engine visibility than the court itself.
Those are private businesses with opt-out processes, and they respond to the same approach as data brokers. This layer is usually where the practical win is, and it is covered in how to remove yourself from people search sites.
The court's own page rarely ranks. The company that copied it does.
When nothing moves
A civil judgment, a public dispute, a bankruptcy filing: these are frequently immovable and permanently public. Being told that honestly is more useful than paying for an attempt that was never viable.
In that situation the work is what else occupies page one for your name, which is a long programme rather than a takedown. See how to push down negative search results.
Common questions
Does a dismissed case get removed automatically?
No. Dismissal changes the outcome recorded, not the existence of the public filing, unless sealing or expungement is separately obtained.
Can I ask the court to de-index its own page?
Some courts apply noindex directives to certain record types, and it is worth asking the clerk what their policy is.
What about federal records?
Federal filings are widely republished and sealing is similarly narrow. The aggregator layer remains the most practical target.
Find out if it can come down.
The scan is free and confidential. You get a viability answer on each item, a fixed price, and a timeline. Anything accepted and still published at 14 days is refunded in full.
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Working through this for a business? See Executive reputation management.