New York ACS Expungement Lawyer

In New York City, the Administration for Children's Services (ACS) investigates reports of neglect and abuse of children. If the ACS receives a report that a child is at risk they will open an investigation. That means that a case has been opened and the investigated person now has a record. Being investigated by the ACS can be scary and frustrating as the ACS has the power to remove your children from you. And once a case has been open, even if it is determined that the report was unfounded, you have a “record” with ACS that will impact how ACS treats future investigations and may also impact other areas of your life. However, under New York law, ACS cases can be expunged, resulting in there being no record that you were investigated by the ACS. To learn more about the ACS case expungement process, contact an experienced New York ACS expungement lawyer at Stephen Bilkis & Associates.

If someone contacts the ACS and reports that a child is at risk, the ACS is required to open a case and investigate. Even if the person being investigated knows that the report was a misunderstanding or an intentionally false report, to ensure the welfare of children, the ACS must investigate.

There are several different types of abuse or maltreatment of a child: Physical abuse or neglect, educational neglect, emotional abuse or neglect, verbal abuse, medical neglect, sexual abuse, and drug and alcohol abuse.

After the ACS investigation, it will issue a report that will either include a finding of “indicated” or “founded.” A finding of “indicated” means that the allegations in the report were substantiated. If the person is indicated, their name will be placed on the New York State Child Abuse and Maltreatment Register.

Once there is case, the investigated person has a record. Much like a criminal record, a record of an ACS case, whether the finding was unfounded or indicated, can follow you for years. If the record indicates you were found to have abused or maltreated a child, you may be denied employment that involves contact with children or other opportunities.

Even if the report is determined to be unfounded, if there is a future report to ACS, the investigation will be conducted with heighted scrutiny. However, with the help of an experienced New York ACS expungement lawyer, you may be able to get your case expunged.

Under NYSOS § 422, for a case to be expunged by the New York State Office of Children and Family Services, one of the following must happen:

• False report. You must establish that the person who made the report to ACS has been found guilty of falsely filing an incident with respect to the ACS report in violation of NYPL § 240.55. This may be difficult since reports to ACS of child abuse are maltreatment are kept anonymous.
• Prove that the allegations are untrue. You must present clear and convincing evidence that the allegations in the case of abuse or maltreatment of a child were not true. The standard of “clear and convincing evident” is a high standard. Note that once an investigation finds that that a subject is indicated, to get the case expunged, it is not sufficient to argue that there was not a fair preponderance of evidence to support a finding that there was abuse or maltreatment. The standard is much higher. The court will only consider expunging a case if clear and convincing evidence shows that the subject of the investigation did not in fact abuse or mistreat a child.
• Wait 10 years after filing of report. For an unfounded report, it will be expunged 10 after the report was received by ACS.
• Wait 10 years after child’s 18th birthday. A report is expunged 10 years after the youngest child listed in the report has reached their 18th birthday.

Another option for addressing an ACS case record to minimize its impact on your life is to request that the Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) change a finding of indicated to unfounded. However, it is critical that you move quickly with your request to have your case amended to unfounded. The request must be made within 90 days of the notice you received after the 60-day investigation period. If your case is amended to a finding of unfounded, with the help of an experienced ACS expungement attorney in New York, you can then request that the OCFS expunge the record with evidence of a false report or evidence that the allegations were false.

Note that there is also an option of requesting that the OCFS seal your record. While sealing is another way to minimize the impact on our life of having an ACS record, a sealed case remains in the OCFS database and can be reopened under certain circumstances. An expunged case is removed from the database completely.

While it is important that ACS takes accusations of child abuse and neglect seriously, it is also important that those with ACS records have the opportunity to clear their names and have their ACS records expunged. If you have an ACS record, whether the case was indicated or unfounded, contact the experienced ACS expungement attorneys serving Manhattan at Stephen Bilkis & Associates. We have the experience and resources to help get your record amended, sealed, expunged. Contact us at 800.696.9529 to schedule a free, no obligation consultation regarding your case. We represent clients in the Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, Nassau County, Suffolk County, Long Island, and Westchester County.