Remove Criminal Convictions – Expert Assessment
Remove a Criminal Conviction from Google – Free Expert Assessment
You have served your sentence, rebuilt your life, and moved on – but a Google search of your name still surfaces the article, the court record, or the listing that follows you everywhere. An employer runs a background check via Google and finds it. A new partner searches your name and sees it. A business contact does due diligence and it is the first thing they find. You have done everything the law requires to rehabilitate. Yet the internet has not caught up. That is exactly the interference the right to be forgotten was designed to address, and it is where Cohen Davis Solicitors have built their 25-year track record.
Under UK law, two powerful legal instruments work together to support the removal of criminal conviction content from Google: the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, which provides that spent convictions should not continue to define a person, and UK GDPR, which gives individuals the legal right to demand that search engines and publishers stop processing personal data where that processing is no longer justified. A spent conviction appearing at the top of your Google results is, in most circumstances, exactly the kind of disproportionate processing that UK GDPR was designed to stop.
You should not have to spend the rest of your life defined by something you have already paid for. The law agrees. We know how to enforce it.
The same legal framework that covers spent convictions also covers not guilty verdicts, discontinued proceedings, cautions, foreign convictions, and historic criminal proceedings of all kinds. We also handle court record aggregator sites, police.uk listings, and professional discipline records. The free Expert Assessment gives you a direct conversation with a qualified solicitor who will tell you honestly what can be achieved for your specific case.
Find out if your conviction content can be removed from Google
Request your free assessmentOr call free: 0800 612 7211
What we have achieved – removing criminal conviction content from Google
Real results from real cases, including many involving criminal proceedings, court records, and historic articles.
- 1,017 pages removed from Google in a single case, including court reports and conviction-related articles that had resisted previous approaches (client: Chris)
- 579 pages removed from Google for a California-based client, including historic criminal proceeding content (client: HZ)
- 28 pages removed following an ICO case won against Google – the ICO accepted “most if not all of the very cogent arguments we put forward” – arguments grounded in the right to rehabilitation and the disproportionate impact of continued indexing (client: Diego)
- Successful removal of criminal conviction content from national newspaper websites, court record aggregator sites, and police.uk listings
- Cases resolved for clients in the UK, United States, Canada, Australia, and across the EU
- Law Society Excellence Awards – 2016 Winner, 2019 Shortlisted
The UK’s specialist in removing criminal conviction content from Google
We are Cohen Davis Solicitors – the first dedicated internet law firm in the UK. Our team is led by Yair Cohen, an internet law specialist with over 25 years’ experience in content removal, data protection, and online reputation. We are not a general practice law firm. We do not handle conveyancing, employment, or family law. We handle internet law – and the right to be forgotten from criminal conviction content is one of the areas we know best.
Criminal conviction cases are among the most legally complex we handle – and the most personally significant for the people who come to us. The interaction between the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and UK GDPR, the role of the ICO in compelling Google and publishers to act, the approach of the courts to conviction-related content, the specific policies of court record aggregator sites and police.uk – this is territory we navigate every day. When you instruct us, you get that depth of experience applied directly to your case.
We are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. That means legal professional privilege from your very first contact, a formal duty of care, and the tools to escalate whenever that is what the case requires.
★★★★★
“Giving my family, in particular my sons, a more stress free normal life… you have given us our lives back.”
Eric – 3 pages removed
★★★★★
“My future happiness depended on the work of this company and they more than delivered. I quite simply cannot recommend enough.”
Mr B.G – Nottingham
What conviction-related content can be removed from Google?
The right to be forgotten applies to a wide range of criminal conviction and proceeding-related content. Below is the main content we handle in this area – though if what you are dealing with is not listed, tell us at the assessment and we will advise.
Spent convictions under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974
Once a conviction is spent under the ROA 1974, the case for removing it from Google becomes significantly stronger. The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act was designed precisely to allow individuals to move past historical convictions – but that rehabilitation is meaningless if a Google search still surfaces the conviction article years or decades later. We apply the ROA arguments alongside UK GDPR Article 17 grounds to build the strongest possible case for delisting and source removal. We have a strong track record across a wide range of offence types and conviction ages.
Not guilty verdicts and acquittals
Articles reporting charges or trials where you were found not guilty are among the most powerful cases for removal. The article describes proceedings that ended in your favour – but Google continues to index it prominently under your name, creating the impression to anyone searching you that you were guilty of something. The continued presence of charge or trial articles that never capture the acquittal is one of the clearest examples of disproportionate and misleading data processing, and these cases frequently succeed.
Discontinued proceedings and dropped charges
Where a prosecution was abandoned before trial, or charges were dropped, the fact of the original charge or arrest may still be indexed in Google through news articles or court record sites. You were never convicted of anything – yet the content remains. The legal arguments here are strong, and we handle these cases regularly.
Cautions and minor historical matters
A caution accepted years ago, or a minor historical matter that has long since been resolved, can still appear in Google search results through online court records, news coverage, or data broker listings. The passage of time and the trivial nature of the original matter both weigh in favour of removal under UK GDPR’s proportionality test.
Other conviction-related content we remove from Google
- Foreign convictions – convictions in overseas jurisdictions appearing in UK Google results
- Court records and tribunal listings – crown court, magistrates court, and tribunal decisions indexed via Google
- MPTS and SDT decisions – Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service and Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal outcomes
- Historic newspaper articles about criminal cases – from national and local titles, online-only publications, and broadcast transcripts
- Police.uk and court record aggregator sites – listings on third-party sites that index conviction data
- Director disqualification records – Companies House and related filings appearing in search results
- Conviction records from when you were a minor – historic youth justice records that continue to surface online
- Professional discipline records – regulatory body outcomes that index alongside criminal conviction content
If the conviction-related content you need removed is not listed above, describe it in the assessment form. If there is a legal route to removal, we will identify it.
Who comes to us to remove criminal conviction content from Google?
The situations below reflect the most common cases we handle in the criminal conviction removal area. If your circumstances match one of these, we have almost certainly handled multiple similar cases before and know the most effective approach.
A spent conviction still appears when employers Google you
You are applying for jobs, contracts, or professional positions. The employer, recruiter, or client Googles your name and finds the conviction article immediately. Your conviction is spent under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act. You are under no obligation to disclose it. But Google has not moved on. The fact that a spent conviction appears prominently in Google results is precisely the harm that the right to be forgotten – combined with the ROA 1974 – was designed to remedy. These cases have strong legal foundations, and we handle them regularly.
You were found not guilty but the arrest or charge article still ranks
You were charged with an offence and acquitted at trial. Or the charges were dropped before trial reached. Either way, you were found or declared not guilty. Yet a Google search still surfaces the article reporting the original charge, arrest, or allegation – with little or no mention of the outcome. This is one of the clearest cases for removal under UK GDPR. The continued indexing of a charge article after an acquittal misrepresents the facts and causes ongoing and disproportionate harm.
The proceedings were discontinued but an article about them remains
A criminal prosecution was abandoned before trial – the CPS discontinued, the charges were withdrawn, or the matter never proceeded to court. But an article about the charges or investigation continues to rank in Google results under your name. You were never convicted. The matter never went to trial. Yet the digital record of the allegations persists. This is a strong case for delisting under the right to be forgotten, and we have resolved many cases in exactly this situation.
A foreign conviction appears in UK Google results
A conviction recorded in another country – in the United States, Europe, Australia, or elsewhere – appears in UK Google results under your name. You may have served the sentence abroad, the conviction may be spent or pardoned under the laws of the relevant country, or it may relate to conduct that would not constitute a criminal offence in the UK. UK GDPR applies to what appears in UK-facing search results regardless of where the underlying event took place. We handle foreign conviction removal cases regularly.
A caution from years ago is indexed via an online court record site
A simple caution accepted years ago, perhaps for a minor matter, has been picked up by a court record aggregator site or a data broker and is now indexing prominently in Google results. The caution itself may be spent, the conduct may have been trivial, and the continued Google presence of the information may be entirely disproportionate to any legitimate public interest. We address both the aggregator sites directly and Google delisting via UK GDPR in these cases.
A news article from a case where charges were later dropped
A newspaper reported on your arrest, charge, or investigation. The case was subsequently dropped – the CPS decided not to proceed, the complainant withdrew, or the evidence did not support prosecution. The newspaper article remains, however – in many cases still appearing near the top of Google results under your name, years after the matter was closed without a conviction. We pursue removal and delisting in these cases as a matter of course, with a strong track record of success.
A conviction record from when you were a minor
A criminal conviction or youth caution from when you were a minor continues to appear in Google results years or decades later. The youth justice system is specifically designed to allow young people to move on from their past. A conviction that was spent almost immediately under the ROA, and that relates to conduct from childhood or adolescence, carries particularly strong arguments for removal from Google. We handle youth record removal cases and are experienced in the specific legal arguments these cases require.
Professional discipline records (MPTS/SDT) still appearing in Google
A Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service decision, a Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal ruling, or another professional regulatory outcome continues to appear in Google results long after the sanction has been served and your career has resumed. These records sit alongside criminal conviction content in many clients’ Google results. We handle professional discipline removal cases for doctors, solicitors, accountants, teachers, nurses, and financial professionals, and understand the specific arguments these regulatory bodies and Google will engage with.
Why we succeed in removing conviction content where others have failed
Criminal conviction removal is one of the most legally complex areas of content removal work. Google regularly cites public interest in criminal proceedings as grounds for refusing RTBF requests. Publishers argue that court reporting is a matter of public record. Aggregator sites have business models built on indexing exactly this data. Overcoming these positions requires legal precision, the right escalation strategy, and the credibility to make threats that are taken seriously. That is what 25 years of specialist experience provides.
We use the ROA 1974 and UK GDPR together
Most firms apply UK GDPR alone. We apply the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 alongside UK GDPR to build a dual-track legal argument that is harder for Google and publishers to dismiss. The ROA establishes the principle that a spent conviction should not follow a person indefinitely. UK GDPR provides the mechanism to enforce that principle against search engines and online publishers. Together, they make a compelling case – and we know how to construct and present it effectively.
We have won ICO cases involving criminal conviction content
The ICO has the power to compel Google and publishers to remove or delist conviction-related content. We have won ICO cases in this area, including cases where Google had already refused an individual’s RTBF request. The ICO accepted “most if not all of the very cogent arguments we put forward” in one such case, resulting in the removal of 28 pages (client: Diego). An ICO complaint made by a regulated law firm, properly constructed, carries far more weight than one filed by an individual.
We address aggregator sites and court record databases
Many of our clients in this area are affected not just by news articles but by court record aggregator sites and data broker platforms that index conviction data. We know which sites are responsive to which arguments and legal routes, and we pursue both direct removal from these sites and Google delisting simultaneously. Addressing the aggregator at source is often the fastest path to a clean Google result.
We treat a Google refusal as the start, not the end
Google frequently refuses RTBF requests for criminal conviction content, citing public interest in criminal proceedings. We treat that refusal as information – about which argument Google found insufficient and which alternative routes are most likely to succeed. We reframe, we escalate, and we persist. Some of our most significant conviction removal results came after multiple earlier refusals, through sustained legal pressure applied via the ICO, the courts, and direct to Google’s legal team.
The law says you have the right to move on from a spent conviction. We enforce that right.
Find out if your conviction content can be removed from Google
Request your free assessmentWhy a solicitor, not a content removal company, for conviction content removal
25+ years’ experience in content removal – Cohen Davis Solicitors
| Cohen Davis Solicitors | Content removal company | |
|---|---|---|
| SRA regulated | ✓ | ✗ |
| Legal professional privilege | ✓ | ✗ |
| Can advise on Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 | ✓ | ✗ |
| Can make formal ICO complaints with legal standing | ✓ | ✗ |
| Can issue court proceedings against publishers or Google | ✓ | ✗ |
| Advise on UK GDPR Article 17 and data protection law | ✓ | ✗ |
| Direct contacts with Google’s legal team and national publishers | ✓ | ✗ |
| Experience with complex conviction and acquittal cases | ✓ | Limited |
| Fixed fees quoted in writing before work starts | ✓ | Varies |
| 25+ years’ specialist content removal experience | ✓ | ✗ |
Criminal conviction removal is among the most legally demanding content removal work there is. Google cites public interest. Publishers claim press freedom. Aggregator sites have policy positions designed to resist removal. None of these positions is insurmountable – but overcoming them requires legal tools that only a solicitor has.
The rehabilitation you are legally entitled to
The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act exists precisely because Parliament decided that people who have served their sentences should not be defined by them forever. UK GDPR enforces the same principle against search engines. You are not asking Google to be kind to you. You are asserting a legal right. Let us do it properly.
★★★★★
“The result has been fantastic and the best I could have hoped for. I was very distressed by the situation I found myself in and Cohen Davis were brilliant.”
Dr B.Y – Bradford
★★★★★
“From start to finish very refreshing. Friendly, efficient, professional and very informative.”
Verified client
Frequently asked questions about removing criminal conviction content from Google
Can a spent conviction be removed from Google?
Yes, in many cases. Once a conviction is spent under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, the legal arguments for removing it from Google become significantly stronger. The ROA establishes the principle that a spent conviction should not continue to affect a person’s life indefinitely. UK GDPR provides the mechanism to enforce that principle against search engines and publishers. Together, these two legal instruments form the basis for many of our most successful conviction removal cases. The specific outcome depends on the offence type, the sentence, the age of the conviction, and the nature of the content – which is exactly what the free Expert Assessment examines.
What is the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act and how does it help?
The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 provides that, after a specified rehabilitation period (which varies by sentence length), most criminal convictions become “spent.” Once spent, the convicted person is treated in law as if the conviction never happened in most contexts – they do not need to disclose it to employers, for instance. The relevance to Google is that a spent conviction appearing prominently in Google results defeats the entire purpose of the ROA. We use the ROA alongside UK GDPR Article 17 to make the case for removal – and the combination is a powerful one.
Can I remove an article from when I was found not guilty?
Yes, and this is one of the strongest categories for removal. An article reporting charges or a trial where you were acquitted – particularly one that gives far more prominence to the allegation than to the verdict – presents one of the clearest cases for delisting under UK GDPR. The fact that you were found not guilty makes continued prominent indexing of the charge article inaccurate in its overall impression and disproportionate in its impact. We have resolved many cases of this type successfully.
Does a caution count as a conviction for RTBF purposes?
A caution is not a criminal conviction – but that does not mean it falls outside the right to be forgotten. A caution accepted many years ago that continues to index in Google through court record sites, data broker listings, or news articles is personal data whose continued processing can be challenged under UK GDPR. In many cases the age of the caution and the proportionality test strongly favour removal. We handle caution removal cases and can advise you on the specific arguments available at the free Expert Assessment.
Can I remove a foreign conviction from UK Google results?
Yes. UK GDPR applies to what appears in UK-facing Google search results regardless of where the underlying conviction occurred or where the content is hosted. A conviction in the United States, Australia, Europe, or elsewhere that appears in UK Google results can be challenged under UK GDPR. We also consider whether the conviction is spent or pardoned under the laws of the relevant country, whether it relates to conduct not constituting an offence in the UK, and whether the continued indexing is proportionate. Foreign conviction removal is a regular part of our work.
What if the conviction was for a serious offence?
We do not decline cases on the basis of the nature of the offence. The legal test under UK GDPR is whether the continued processing of the personal data is proportionate and justified in the current context. That test applies regardless of how serious the original offence was. Relevant factors include the age of the conviction, the sentence served, the extent of rehabilitation, and the degree of ongoing public interest. We have handled cases across a wide range of offence types. The Expert Assessment gives you an honest view of the prospects without judgement.
Can Google remove links to court records and conviction databases?
Yes. Google can delist links to court records and conviction database entries from its search results under UK GDPR, even where the underlying record remains publicly accessible elsewhere. We also pursue direct removal from the third-party sites hosting conviction data where that is achievable. Whether Google will delist depends on the specific nature of the content, the public interest arguments, and how the case is constructed – which is exactly what we assess in the free Expert Assessment.
Does a conviction need to be spent before it can be removed from Google?
No. While a spent conviction significantly strengthens the legal arguments, UK GDPR’s proportionality test does not require a conviction to be spent before it can be the subject of a removal request. Other factors – including the age of the article, the extent of your rehabilitation, the triviality of the original matter, and the degree of current public interest – can all support a removal argument even for an unspent conviction. The Expert Assessment examines all of these factors for your specific case.
What happens in the free Expert Assessment?
A qualified internet law solicitor calls you. You share the URLs of the conviction-related content you want removed and explain the background to your case. The solicitor assesses the legal basis for removal under the ROA 1974 and UK GDPR, identifies the most effective route (Google RTBF, ICO complaint, publisher direct, court action), and gives you an honest view of the prospects. The call takes approximately 15 minutes and is completely free. Within 48 hours you receive a written case review and a fixed-fee quote. No obligation, no pressure.
How much does it cost to remove a conviction from Google?
Standard cases start from £1,000 + VAT, with a fixed fee quoted in writing before any work begins. Complex cases – multiple articles, resistant publishers, ICO escalation, court proceedings, or cross-border content – start from £5,000 + VAT. The Expert Assessment itself is completely free.
What if you tell me you cannot help?
We tell you honestly. One of our clients noted: “Refreshingly – for a lawyer – Yair Cohen advised me not to hire him in this instance as it would not be a good investment.” If the conviction content cannot be removed or the prospects are too uncertain to justify the cost, we say so at the assessment stage. We would rather give you an honest answer than take your money on a case we do not believe in.
What our clients say
Verified client reviews from Cohen Davis Solicitors
★★★★★
“Your assistance and guidance is far beyond the value of any fees paid.”
Chris – 1,017 pages removed from Google
★★★★★
“1000 thank yous for removing the pages. It took a while but we finally got it off…”
HZ – 579 pages removed, California
★★★★★
The ICO accepted “most if not all of the very cogent arguments” we put forward.
Diego – 28 pages removed, ICO case won
★★★★★
“Giving my family, in particular my sons, a more stress free normal life… you have given us our lives back.”
Eric – 3 pages removed
★★★★★
“Excellent solicitors, very professional and delivered wonderful results.”
Martin – 13 pages removed
★★★★★
“Excellent, professional service delivered within a tight timeline. Have used twice and will use again.”
Thomas – 4 pages, repeat client
★★★★★
“I hope never to need their services again but I would recommend them without hesitation.”
Edwin – New York, 2 pages
★★★★★
“Cohen Davis were exceptionally professional and swift with my case. It was reassuring that they have the experience and knowledge to help me, especially when I live in New York.”
Ms J.J – New York, United States
★★★★★
“My future happiness depended on the work of this company and they more than delivered. I quite simply cannot recommend enough.”
Mr B.G – Nottingham
★★★★★
“I have found your fantastic team of internet lawyers incredibly helpful, robust and hugely knowledgeable. You are certainly a safe pair of hands to be in during difficult times.”
David Baum
★★★★★
“Your team and professional services are excellent and I actually really enjoyed my conversation with the solicitor.”
Mrs S.L
★★★★★
“I am absolutely delighted about the outcome of my right to be forgotten application. This exercise requires considerable expertise and I am totally pleased with the outcome.”
Right to be forgotten client
★★★★★
“The result has been fantastic and the best I could have hoped for. I was very distressed by the situation I found myself in and Cohen Davis were brilliant.”
Dr B.Y – Bradford
★★★★★
“I have been very pleased with the services provided by Cohen Davis. Their team have acted very professionally and the outcome has been very satisfactory.”
Mr E.P – Jersey, Channel Islands
★★★★★
“Thank you Yair for an excellent service. Your attention to detail and approachable staff are an asset to the firm.”
Elliot Crego
How it works – three steps
Free 15-minute Expert Assessment
A qualified internet law solicitor reviews the conviction content you want removed, applies the ROA 1974 and UK GDPR legal tests, and tells you honestly what can be removed from Google and which route is most likely to succeed for your specific case.
Written Case Review and Fixed-Fee Quote
Within 48 hours, you receive a written review of your case and a fixed-fee quote. Valid for 14 days. You decide whether to proceed. Nothing starts until you agree in writing.
We act – and we persist
If you instruct us, we begin work immediately. Named solicitor. Clear communication. Google RTBF, ICO escalation, direct publisher contact, court proceedings – whatever your case requires, we pursue it without stopping at the first refusal.
You have already served your sentence. Let us make sure Google knows it too.
What it costs
- Standard cases – from £1,000 + VAT, fixed fee quoted in writing before any work starts
- Complex cases (multiple conviction articles, ICO proceedings, court action, cross-border content) – from £5,000 + VAT, fully scoped and quoted in advance
- The Expert Assessment itself is free. No obligation, no pressure.
You will never be charged for anything you have not agreed to in writing. If the legal arguments are not strong enough for your case, we will tell you so at the assessment stage rather than take your money.
Request your free Expert Assessment
Tell us about the conviction content you want removed from Google. A solicitor will call you back within one working day. The call is free, confidential, covered by legal professional privilege, and carries no obligation.