What Is The Public Records Right In California?

What Records Are Public In California? Can I Get Them With An Online People Search?

In California, government transparency is built into the law. The California Public Records Act (CPRA) declares that “access to information concerning the conduct of the people's business is a right of every person."

Under the act, a public record is defined broadly. Any writing containing information relating to the conduct of the public's business prepared, owned, used, or retained by any state or local agency regardless of physical form or characteristics.

The act applies to state and local agencies, and gives any person the right to request inspection or copies of records unless a specific law exempts them.

Requests must reasonably describe an identifiable record or records. Agencies cannot be required to create a new record for you or compile a new database. They only need to provide existing records.

Many records in California held by government agencies are presumptively available to the public. But the real question becomes which ones, and how can you get them.

What Kinds Of Records Are Public In California?

Here are common categories of public records:

1. Government agency records

The CPRA covers government‐created and maintained records. Correspondence, reports, emails, electronic files, audio/video recordings, and more. These can include:

☑ Government meeting minutes, agendas, policy documents

☑ Contracts, audits, budgets, regulatory filings

☑ Business entity filings with state agencies. For example, filings with the Secretary of State

☑ Many court administrative records and judicial branch records

2. Court and case records

Records generated by the courts are typically public, but with important exceptions. For example:

☑ According to the Judicial Council of California, most court case records are public, but internet access may be limited depending on the case type.

☑ Some case types are confidential by law. For example juvenile dependency, juvenile delinquency, and sealed proceedings.

☑ You may have to go in person at a courthouse to view certain records if remote access is restricted.

3. Vital records, property records, business records, and more.

☑ Vital records like birth, death, marriage, and divorce are often publicly accessible with the right procedure, though many have restriction.

☑ Property/land records, documents like deeds, and liens are public in most counties.

☑ Business entity records. For example filings with the Secretary of State are generally available.

4. Criminal/justice records

☑ The California Department of Justice states that criminal history information is accessible for certain purposes via specific requests.

☑ Arrest records and conviction records may be publicly searchable, though with significant restrictions on data, privacy, and by county/court.

☑ Some law enforcement records may be exempt from disclosure.

What Records Are Not Public Or Are Partially Restricted?

The CPRA and other laws set out various exemptions for certain records. Some of the common restrictions include:

• Personnel, medical, or similar files kept by an agency, where disclosure would violate individual privacy rights.
• Records prepared in the course of pending litigation or investigative records still under investigation.
• Records that are specifically protected by other laws. For example juvenile case files, sealed records, and some adoption records.
• Exemptions may also apply when the public interest served by non-disclosure clearly outweighs the public interest served by disclosure.

It's also worth noting that just because a record is supposedly public doesn't always mean it is easily accessible, or free.

Can You Get These Records With Our Online People Search?

The answer is yes, but with caveats.

What about our people search service?
Our people search service have access to publicly available information, and sometimes non‐public information, and present it in consumer-friendly formats. Examples include:

☑ You can search a name in California and get contact info, address history, property ownership, criminal records, etc.

☑ The data from multiple sources. County records, court records, property records, publicly available databases, and more.

How Effective Is Our California People Search?
☑ Because California has a broad public records law, many of the underlying data sets are public records and thus theoretically accessible by anyone, including through our California people search.

☑ We do not guaranteed the search results to be up-to-date, or 100% accurate. We rely on public records data. If the data isn't updated from a government agency, we have to wait until its been updated to get the accurate info.

California has strong privacy protections
☑ Just because the data is accessible via our people search doesn't mean it may be used for all purposes. For example employment screening, tenancy decisions, or credit decisions may be subject to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and California privacy laws.

☑ California has strong privacy protections. Data brokers are increasingly subject to regulation under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and other statutes, especially in how they collect, display, and allow removal of personal information.

What You Can Realistically Expect Our People Search
☑ With just a name you will be able to uncover public record data. Past addresses, phone numbers, property ownership, and court cases or criminal records.

☑ But you may not find everything. Some records might be sealed, some not digitized, some require in-person access at the courthouse. For example, one strategy to open court records in California notes that remote access is only partial and varied.

☑ Some counties or agencies may restrict online availability or require authentication/fees. For instance, counties may remove certain data elements from online indexed property searches for privacy or security reasons.

A Significant Portion Of Public Records In California Can Be Accessed

Many records in California are public records under the CPRA, covering everything from government agency files, court records, property records, business filings, and more. A significant portion of these can be accessed.

Our online people search tools can tap into these public records and make the search easier. You may find a name, address history, property links, court records, and more. You can also go directly to the pertinent government agency, but using our tools, from the comfort of your home, is much easier.